Poisonous Fox

Kate and I made quick progress down Blossom Hill, leaving Ma’Ritz with only a brief wave to Marianne on our way. With Kate walking beside me, most of the peacekeepers ignored me, along with the usual suspects of rough laborers who lingered to the sides of the street, nearly out of sight but not quite. As I caught the eyes of one such suspect, I obliquely caught Kate’s attention and gestured towards them.

“I thought the checkpoint was supposed to keep the Hill clear of certain types,” I said, not loudly enough to be heard over the boulevard’s din, not unless a Talent or Spell were involved; I had been assured that such wastes of Marks were rare, at least among the common populace.

Kate glanced where I had gestured and she saw the few roustabouts I had sighted, where they lounged beneath the eaves of a shopfront. Kate scoffed and shook her head. “Someone needs to clean the muck,” she explained.

I revisited my earlier assumption that the relatively drab characters were suspicious. Perhaps, I had been overly judgmental. At least, that was my train of thought until Kate continued.

“Though normally they keep outta sight,” she said. “Why ask?”

“Hm?” I responded half-heartedly. I was occupied wondering which method the Garnets and other gangs were using to infiltrate the Hill. While these particular people might not have been malicious in their intentions, it would likely be possible for someone with such intentions to sneak in among the rest of the riff-raff.

“I wanted to know why you brought it up,” Kate said. “One of them bothering you?” Kate asked directly. “I know they aren’t much to look at, but I figured you wouldn’t be the sort to be bothered by that type of stuff.” Kate took a slight tone of trepidation as she finished, perhaps even worrying, though I could not fathom why, unless she was suddenly judging my character as lacking.

If only she knew, I mused.

“No, not at all,” I assured her instead. “You know that I encountered several criminals in my nightly duties protecting Ma’Ritz. This merely led me to consider potential security risks.”

“Ah. Yeah,” Kate said, nodding to herself, looking relieved. “You killed ‘em though, right? So all square there?”

A quick memory surfaced, of me falling through the night air, wind rushing past me, the autonomous movement of my false arm as it unraveled and crushed through flesh and bone, releasing offal and worse. As quickly as the thought came, I pushed it away, suppressing it with a shudder.

“-I did,” I confirmed.

“Huh. Well, that never should have had to happen in the first place, but I’m glad you held your own. Impressive, really, considering your lack of training and all. Fat lotta good the baron’s men do with their ‘honest work,’ yeah?”

I glanced at Kate, both amused and concerned. “Are you allowed to speak so forwardly concerning the baron? He is the lord of the land?”

Kate guffawed. “You might not know, but the Knights report to Kwin, to the Crown, not to the baron.” She finished with a hawked loogie spat upon the ground.

“Lovely,” I said, wincing and turning my head away in disgust.

Conversation quickly stalled out after that. Kate seemed confused as to why.

We pushed through the checkpoint without hassle, the peacekeepers quickly recognizing Kate and avoided meeting her eye. I recognized one of the peacekeepers, but the man pretended that he failed to recognize me, likely not wanting to stir Kate’s ire. Until that point, I had not realized Kate sat above them in the city’s hierarchy. As we finished passing through, entering the bustle of the quarters, I asked Kate about it.

“They seemed to defer to you,” I pointed out to her as we walked away from the checkpoint.

Kate grinned down at me.

“You bet,” she said. “I’m titled. They aren’t. Plus, my mom’s in charge of all the High Knights in the city. So they’d better step carefully ‘round me.” She puffed out her chest, boasting, still grinning.

I filed the knowledge away, but her pride, and the hierarchy: both manipulatable. I considered broaching several of my issues with the peacekeepers. It seemed like a potentially quick method to remove one of the several thorns in my side. But before I committed to airing dirty laundry, potentially my own, though hopefully not, I decided to push for more information regarding Kate’s status.

“Titled?” I prodded her regarding her status.

“Yep!” She continued boasting. “You know I’m Sir Gaurdson, yeah?”

I nodded, comparing what I knew from back home, and what I had assumed here. “Are all knights titled?” I asked.

“Some,” Kate shrugged. When she saw some of my confusion, she added, “But I’m not a full knight, yet.”

“Alright…” I may have pursed my lips, though I strove to keep a neutral face, especially when displaying a potential weakness. “But you are a Sir? Even though you’re not a knight, yet?”

“Gotta be honest,” Kate said as she pulled me through the crowds of the Merc Quarter, “Not sure where you’re going with these questions. Not all knights are titled, and the title’s what gives the Sir.”

“Then what do I call most knights?” I asked. I was making an attempt to address the clash between my expectations and the reality I found myself within.

“I dunno, their name?” Kate sounded confused as to why I was asking. “Maybe with a ‘Knight’ before that?”

I nodded, as though I had known this all along. It appeared that knights, even high knights, were relatively mediocre in regards to status. But that left a question.

“What’s your title then?” I asked, as I was fairly certain that each referred to either land or an inheritable trait of some sort. “I don’t think you’ve ever told me.”

“Haaa,” Kate said, scratching the nape of her neck. “Maybe I’ll tell ya later.”

I decided against pressing her for more information, as it appeared to leave her uncomfortable. I figured that if I needed to know, I could always ask around, without potentially straining my relations with Kate.

As we finished pushing our way through the Merc Quarter, passing the public training yards without stopping. As we passed, I saw Instructor Phillip Blackrest training several men by throwing heavy sandbags their way as they drilled. From the distance, I could see his lips curled upwards just slightly, which for him was a grin.

“Where are we headed anyways?” I asked Kate.

“Told ya, the garrison’s library.”

“You did,” I said slowly. “But where in the city is that?”

“The tower,” she said simply.

I resisted the urge of rubbing my temples in frustration. There were multiple structures in the city that could qualify as a tower. Even the tenement houses in the slums could qualify, though I doubted the knights kept a library there, considering how run-down and crime-rampant the slums were.

Ten minutes of walking along the main thoroughfare saw us arrive at the divide, the sunken highway that split the city in two. Kate steered us to the left, heading towards the chasm. The ‘good’ side of the divide saw the highway lined with a raised sidewalk and promenade which overlooked the bustling traffic of caravans moving goods north and south. From what I had learned, lumber and ‘jungle-ore’ was the largest import, while artificed goods and alchemy products were exported towards the frontier and colonies.

As we walked, we came nearer to the chasm, and I finally realized which tower Kate referred to.

It was that tower.

Sitting at the edge of the chasm, separating the bridge from the city, with foundations stretching across the width of the highway, was the primary fortification that defended against incursion from the tribes to the south. Local vernacular called it the bridge-tower.

“Your library is in there?” I asked, my voice just slightly tight.

“Course,” Kate responded gruffly, marching us towards the Eastern entrance. “It’s the main garrison. Think we keep the good stuff where we can’t protect it?”

“No, of course that makes sense,” I said. “The tower is just…”

“Impressive?” Kate asked, amused and proud all at once.

“Yes,” I admitted. “Very much so.”

“There’s a reason the baron’s thugs afear the knights,” she said, pushing her chest out and thumping it with a fist.

Were I to compare the bridge-tower to a structure back home, it would fall short. Modern skyscrapers would be difficult to beat. However, compared to the regular edifices of the city, the tower stretched both high and wide. Made of gray stone, likely quarried from the wastes, it stretched three blocks wide, and perhaps ten stories high. It was a massive chunk of stone. Furthermore, the joints had been treated with various alchemicals, giving the stone a uniform appearance. Were it not for its regular corners and even embellishments, the tower might have been mistaken for a single slab of stone. It was the seat of the true law-enforcement of the city, the seat of the Crown’s influence in the city; likely home to many secrets and seized substances… and Kate was inviting me into it.

Not that I would abuse Kate’s trust during this visit. However, I could learn the floor plan, observe security, and be altogether better prepared for a future infiltration.

Just barely, I withheld the sly grin from showing upon my lips.

As we reached the entrance, Kate strode straight into the inset and brought me along with her, pulling me by the elbow. It appeared that foot traffic in and out was common enough that the heavy doors were left open, but this was not an indicator of security. For as we entered the inlet, striding up to the door, I could not fail to notice the murder holes above us and the windows offering advantageous positions to fire upon any intruder.

The fifteen feet from the start of the tower to the door felt much longer than they were, as I could not help but count the number of ways we could be murdered with each step. There was even a springiness to the flagstones beneath our feet, indicating potential traps.

A lesser person might have broken out into a sweat.

Kate stepped first through the doorway, bringing me along behind her.

“Name yourself!” A woman called once we cleared the entryway.

“You know me, Em,” Kate said, scoffing.

I caught sight of the speaker, a High Knight wearing a half-plate with an arming sword and small crossbow. She held the crossbow at the ready, though pointed downwards. It seemed she was obeying some manner of trigger discipline.

“Perhaps,” the knight, named Em, said. “But it’s procedure.” Em pointed towards me, “and I don’t recognize your guest.”

“Easy, Em.” Kate tried soothing Em and flashing a winning smile. “Jackie’s with me. We’ve been training together under Blackrest.”

Em scoffed. “As if that’s credentials to enter. Might even be more of a mark against her even, considering how Phillip behaves these days.”

The conversation was turning awkward, and I was out of my depth with both Em and the procedure’s Em was referencing. So I left it to Kate, trusting her to gain us admittance.

Instead, I focused on the entryway.

Behind us were the iron doors, held open by a latching mechanism. Judging by the gears, and the lever to the side, I thought the doors would slam shut in case of emergency. Which meant they were weighted to swing closed, as I saw no other gears to move the doors themselves. In the hallway we found ourselves in, the walls stood roughly ten feet apart, but closed in at several bottlenecks with sweeping angles. The knight Em, dressed in uniform, breastplate, and greaves, stood near the lever to release the doors. As there were several window ports into the entryway, and a continuance of murderholes above us, I could only assume that a second lever existed beyond the entryway, in the case that whoever stood in Em’s position was disabled.

“Emmmm,” Kate complained, “She’s with me, we’re just visiting the library, and I won’t let her out of my sight.”

“Hm,” Em said, considering. The crossbow had yet to be fully lowered.

“Oh c’mon!” Kate said, exasperated. “There’s no rule that says I can’t escort someone in.”

“Only if there’s a reason. And it needs approval,” Em said. When Kate went to protest, Em held up a finger. “But! But, given who you are–”

“-and who my mother is?” Kate said, switching to a satisfied smirk, though I felt it was slightly premature.

“-I suppose I’ll allow it,” Em said. “But you had better watch your guest. Any trouble she gets in is on you. Hear me?” Em glared, as though to drive her point home. Not that it made a lasting impression.

“Yeah, I hear ya,” Kate said. She turned to me and grinned, “See? We’re good! Now c’mon!”

Kate pulled me off towards the hallway to the right, where we found the first closed door, which Kate pushed open without trouble. It seemed to have been left unlocked. I wondered if that was always the case, or just during regular hours. We passed three turns, two flights of stairs up, five more turns, another flight of stairs down, and two more turns.

Were I not focusing on keeping track, I likely would have lost track. The fortress had been built as a maze, likely as a defensive measure. It proved all the more value to this excursion as I was coming away with a mental model of the place.

Benignly as possible, I fished for some information. “Is the library much further?” I asked.

“Not really, why?” Kate said.

Truthfully, I was gauging the extent of the maze by her answer. However, that was not what I said, instead giving a less-truthful answe.:

“At this rate,” I said, “I worry I might miss my evening shift.”

“Haah,” Kate said. “Nah, we’re almost there.”

She pulled me down a left turn, where we passed a kunbeor scrubbing the plain stone walls with a wet rag. Kate’s eyes glossed over the woman, as though the slave was merely furniture, or less than. My own eyes lingered on the kunbeor’s leather collar. While the collar gave more comfort than one made of cold-iron, at the end of the day it was still a mark of enforced servitude.

My steps paused slightly enough that Kate unintentionally jerked me forward as she continued walking.

“For being worried about being late,” Kate remarked, noticing the slight strain on her arm, but either not noticing or not caring that I stumbled to catch my balance. “You sure are dawdling all a sudden.”

“Sorry,” I said, averting my eyes from the kunbeor. “My mind was on something else.”

“Hm. Well, if we hurry, I wanna show you something later.”

I hoped that it was not her genitalia that she wished to show me, but one never knew with Sir Kate Guardson.

Another turn and stairway up left us at a hallway lined with windows on one side, and a polished wooden door on the other. I wanted to pause and glance out the window, but Kate pulled me along, not allowing me to stop and gawk at the vista.

“Don’t worry,” Kate said as she pressed towards the door. “We’ll see a better view later. That view’s just towards the city.”

She pushed open the dark-stained door.

“And–” she made a slight bow “-the garrison library.”

She grinned as she watched me enter ahead of her.

I took it all in almost immediately.

There was no counter, no clerk, nor surly librarian. There were two tables with ratty cloth chairs, several artificed lamps, and no more than eight bookshelves, with only seven full of books, and the eighth only had a single row filled at the bottom.

“Pretty great, yeah?” Kate bragged.

I nodded slowly, trying to check my assumptions at the door, both to avoid worsening my relations, and also to avoid revealing more of my past than I wished to. But truthfully, I was underwhelmed.

“Indeed,” I said. “I have not seen such a collection of books.”

I twisted my language, avoiding a direct lie. For it was true, I had never seen that exact gathering of books. And if it were to be compared with a private home’s library, it certainly would be impressive.

“Do we have the place to ourselves, then?” I asked, wondering how well used, or dis-used, the library stood.

“Hm?” Kate said. “Maybe? But I know what you’re thinking, and we can’t take advantage of it.” She gave me a salacious glance, which left my stomach twisting in a mostly unwelcome fashion. “Besides, we’re here for a reason, yeah?”

“That is true,” I said, a mix of relief and disappointment. “You mentioned books covering Glyphs for the Academy?”

“Right,” Kate agreed. She walked to one of the less dusty bookshelves and ran a finger over several titles before pulling a worn book. “And here. Catalog of Glyphs and Sigils a Crown sanctioned Sacred Artist can do.”

She dropped the inch-thick leather backed book on a table, motioning for me to sit in a chair, while pulling another around to put it beside my own. Sitting casually, she flipped open the book, flapping the cover on the table with disregard for wear and tear. She was quite vigorous as she thumbed through the pages.

While I watched, I could not help but wonder how many pages she tore when she read.

As I read over her shoulder though, I saw a great many Glyphs flash by, with their names and descriptions ranging from useless to quite alluring. There were Marks of Acuity and Marks of Measurement, Glyphs of Iron Skin and one of Bounding Jumps. There was one for Night Vision and another for Thermal Sight. I saw a few that I thought might synergize well with my current build.

“What are you looking for, currently?” I asked Kate, watching her pass by another section that looked interesting. If I ever had the chance, I would likely try to get a copy of this catalog for myself. Or this copy, should I ever have the opportunity to steal it.

“Glyphs of Grace,” Kate said, before mumbling, “Or something like that. They should be all about the same section… I think…”

Given that some of the Glyphs we passed by sounded promising, such as a Greater Glyph of Unending Endurance, I wanted to challenge the idea of pigeon-holing myself into a Grace or Grace adjacent Mark. Because, at the end of the day, I did not need to attend the Academy. But I did need to advance my capabilities. I would rather progress with a more optimal Mark than waste a slot to fulfill an onerous requirement from the Academy.

“Are we certain it needs to be Grace?” I proposed, attempting to sound soft, and perhaps trepidacious.

Kate furrowed her brows, silently, before nodding to herself. “You’re worried it’ll be dumb, right?”

“Pardon?” I asked, thought that did, indeed, sound near my concerns.

“The Mark? That since it’s got Grace in the name, it’ll be weak. So you’re angling for something a bit more… useful? Feisty? Better for getting stuff done in an aggressive manner.” She nodded again as she finished stringing those words together, as though she accomplished eloquence.

“Perhaps I am slightly worried,” I admitted. “Which is why I wonder how rigorous these requirements are.”

“Preeetty rigorous,” Kate said. “It’s not just tradition. It’s the Mark that’s best aligned with what they’ll teach ya, so you’ll collect the best return on advancement.”

“In theory, could I not pick a less applicable Mark and suffer through the inefficiency?” I asked.

“To a point,” Kate said. “But that won’t fly with the instructors.”

“Is there a reason for that?”

“Told ya already. Tradition.” Kate leaned back in her chair, catching herself with feet under the table, while she reached the bookshelf and grabbed a faded book from the shelf. “If you need proof, read through this. I don’t recommend it, it’s dry as the Wastes, but it’s in there.”

I glanced at the book’s title: Royal History of the Kwin Academy

The book was two inches thick, and seemed counterproductive to my overall purposes. I doubted I could make any serious headway in reading it either, at least not with the time I had available at the library. Even skimming through it would be questionable. WIthout intending to, I frowned at the book.

“Smart!” Kate said, laughter in her voice as she saw me furrow my brows. “I wouldn’t read it either. But gods, you shouldn’t worry about getting a useless Mark. We’ll be sure to find a good one for you. Besides, it’s how you use them that determines growth, not necessarily their name.”

I licked my lips slowly, considering. I could push for something more useful, and potentially burn my opportunity with the Academy. This might result in losing the chance to gain the Mark in the first place, as the excuse to go through this effort with Kate and the Crown sanctioned Sacred Artist was the Academy in the first place. Which would ultimately delay my progression. If it were only a minor delay, the potential cost in efficiency might be worth it. But I could not guarantee when I would have the next chance of receiving a high quality Mark. And the matter of efficiency with a Mark of Grace might not even be that poor either, depending on what we found.

“Let’s see the Marks of Grace then,” I said, giving in to the implicit demands upon me.

Kate finished finding the section in the catalog.

“Here!” She said, pointing at several of them. “Take a gander at these. Just ignore the Sigils and Lesser Glyphs. Straight to the Greater. Anything else will hamstring your growth.”

I scanned down the list. The first few were focused on enhancing attributes in ‘graceful’ manners. The base of the Mark was typically a physical enhancement, with growth tending towards ‘graceful’ actions. It left me wondering just how much of that growth was directed by self-perceptions, and how much by the perceptions of the Mark’s design. Which brought up another question: Did the Sacred Artist’s perception of what ‘Grace’ is affect the Mark’s growth? Something to consider, but for now, irrelevant. I continued reading through the list.

Dexterous Grace: Greater Glyph for Insightful Flexibility. Bend, do not break. Most often advances along physical enhanced activities. Growth similar to Graceful Movements.

Strong Grace: Greater Glyph of Tension. Steel to silk; firm to soft. Most often advances along speed enhanced guided activities. Growth similar to a physical aspect of Dances through Courtly Battles.

Spiritual Grace: Greater Glyph of Spiritual Communion. Soothe and mend. Most often advances one’s intangible energy supplies, useful as a secondary to those demanding high Spirit usage. Has shown flexible growth patterns: see Battery Siphons; Physicians; Sorcerers.

Mindful Grace: Greater Glyph of Mind with a flavor of maneuvering about accepted restrictions. The head turned by the neck. Most often advances mental attributes required for high intelligence service and support work. Has shown flexible growth patterns: see Greater Glyph of Mind.

“What’s with the Greater Glyph in all of these listings?” I asked.

“It’s the base of the Mark. The only Glyph that’s guaranteed, though its effects aren’t always the same, and the growth depends on the underlying patterns. Basically, it’s as close as you can get to a guaranteed ability, other than handicapping yourself with a sigil.”

Graceful Movements: Greater Glyph of Travel Abstract. Depends heavily on perceptions and hurdles presented. Tends towards motion based growth, which covers a broad array of possibilities: see Abstract Marks.

With Athletics and Gymnastics, I already had movement covered. Travel could always be better, but other than developing the ability to fly or teleport, I failed to see how this Mark would improve my build.

Artful Tongue and Cheek: Greater Glyph of Language. Speak, be understood. Most often advances one’s ability to communicate effectively. Has been known to couple with compulsion based effects. Has been known to pair well with musical based Talents. For additional references, see Bardic Marks.

“This sounds promising,” I said, pointing at the communication based ability. “Being able to affect others with words could be useful…” Leaving off the potential of manipulations.

Kate made a face, before some perverted thought dawned upon her, at least judging by the growing salacious grin. “And I could always find use for a well-skilled tongue,” she said, waggling her eyebrows.

I groaned, “Nevermind.” I kept looking.

Service of Ideal Silence: Greater Glyph of Slavery Abstract. Quietly perform as needs done. Depends heavily on perceptions of tasks presented by recognized authority. Tends towards highly competent service, depending on mental alacrity. Growth carries risks for deviant results: see Deranged Perceptions & Risks. See Abstract Marks.

“Disgusting,” I said, barely audible in the scoff I made at the same time.

“Don’t knock it,” Kate said with a shrug. “That one opens a ton of doors.”

I shuddered, “Even then, no thanks.”

Hidden Blades and Beauty Seen: Greater Glyph of Glamour Abstract. Conceal the unsightly. Tends towards pleasure based pursuits; Tends towards outwards manipulations; Tends towards either high Body OR high Spirit requirements. See Abstract Marks.

“An assassin’s Mark?” I asked, dubious that this fell under the Grace school, and that it was just there, available, when obviously the Mark was geared towards malicious activities.

“Not really?” Kate said. “But kinda sorta? It’s an Abstract one,” she said, pointing at the word. “That means its growth, development, and starting point, all of it depends on a person’s beliefs and perception of reality. It’s not like the Mark’s sapient on its own, yeah? Still though, it’d be a good one. Especially since you’re wanting to get the most outta it.”

“I’ll take that under consideration,” I said. If the Mark really could grow in any direction, then it likely would fit into any build I decided upon.

Songs of Merry and Rhetoric: Greater Glyph of Harmony Abstract. Sing, force merry. Most often advances towards musical pursuits; in some cases, towards manipulative Talents; most often innocuous. Pairs well with entertainment focuses. See Abstract Marks. See List of Archetypes: Bards, Entertainers, Rabble Rousers.

This Mark was all about drawing attention towards oneself, which while it could be useful, tended to be the exact opposite of what I wanted to do. Pass.

Dances through Courtly Battles: Greater Glyph of Dance Abstract. Quick tongue, faster foot. Most often advances towards poise, either in movements, insights, or language. Pairs well with most physical and social pursuits. Has flexible growth patterns: see Abstract Marks.

The last one was abstract as well, but came with an interesting start. It sounded like it could be dextrous, with the ability to tweak people with either words or otherwise out-maneuvering them. And while I wanted to avoid another movement based pattern, I was currently lacking in abilities both to incapacitate and protect myself. I thought that this one could provide those options.

“I’m leaning towards the one for Dancing,” I said, thinking aloud to ensure Kate knew I was considering.

Kate almost grimaced, but not quite. “Maybe pick a second,” she said. “In case the first isn’t possible?”

“I thought the list was for all Crown sanctioned Sacred Artists?”

“Well yeah, but there’s a lotta art involved, yeah? Best to always have a back up plan.”

“Fine,” I said. “Then I suppose my second pick would be Hidden Blades.”

“Sounds promising,” Kate said, with a gleam in her eye. “Should pair well with that battle-ribbon of yours. Or even better if you ever picked up a blade.”

For an instant, I recalled the Red Queen’s eyes as she bled out, as I plunged a crystal dagger through her–

I shuddered, quickly changing the subject. “Now that we’ve selected a potential Mark and a backup for it, what now?” I asked.

“Well, we know the design…” Kate said, trailing off with some excitement as she flipped to an appendix at the back of the catalog. “So the only thing left to do, is to choose…” she reached her destination and pointed to the start of a several page long addendum “...the ink!”

I took a glance at the listing of what appeared to be a mixture of precious stones and concepts.

“And… remind me what this is for, again?”

Kate rolled her eyes. “We’ve been over this,” she said. “The base ink, carbon, would add nothing extra, but it wouldn’t cost any extra either. Getting a flame aspected ink would mean a potential weakness to earth aspects, while earth aspects might be weak to something else.”

“Then why bother with an aspect, if that’s introducing a weakness.”

“They’re stronger,” Kate said simply. “Plus, the specialized inks tend to grow further than non specialized ones do. Would you rather be a generic sword-master, or a flaming sword-master?” She asked, waggling her eyebrows.

“It’s always you and swords,” I complained, to which she grinned.

“I’m not hearing you disagree,” she said.

“These specialized inks are for sure better overall?”

“Yep,” Kate said firmly. “Otherwise they wouldn’t cost so much.”

“How much?” I asked, remembering firmly that I was broke.

“Ehhhh….” Kate scratched the back of her neck again. “Why don’t you pick your favorite out first, then we’ll figure it out.”

And so, I read through the list. The items were listed in no particular order, at least not that I could tell. The first was Carbon, which was listed as a Neutral, followed by Osseous and Vegetal bases, also Neutral. In fact, I thought that I had just discovered the seeming order of the list.

“Just ignore the top bit,” Kate murmured, just as I started going down it. “That’s all the cheap and useless stuff.” She bumped me, leaning over and pointing about halfway down the list. “Start about there.”

I shrugged, considering most of the catalog was alien to me regardless. Though, it might have been nice to have read through more of it.

Sunstone: Solar Affinity derives from pre-breaking. Adjacent Concepts: warmth, life, health.

Lolite: Mimicry Affinity. Adjacent Concepts: transitions, the ephemeral, beauty.

“These seem a bit vague,” I complained. “What effect does this ‘Affinity’ actually have? And what of these ‘Adjacent Concepts?’ What do these even mean? How can anyone make use of this list beyond just an educated guess?”

Kate huffed.

“It’s called Sacred Art for a reason,” she said. “This is probably the best anyone can get, beyond examples, which don’t really matter since everyone’s different. Take the Sweord Glyph. Every knight has one. But the way it grows, and the benefits it brings? Figuring that out’s probably more difficult than describing color to a blind man. The best we can get is the jist of it, and that’s exactly what we have here. The jist.”

“Helpful,” I said dryly, before pointing at Lolite on the page. “Then this Mimicry Affinity. What’s that about?”

“Probably blending in, maybe? Or pretending to be something? Anywhere along those lines, would be my guess, with an emphasis on fluidness and lookin good.”

I wanted to stare at her and ask, ‘really?’ But I refrained. Instead, I paused for a moment, before asking, “Is that really the most information we can get concerning each one?”

Kate shrugged, “Well, examples might work. If you find someone similar to you, in body, mind, and spirit, who got the exact same Mark from the exact same Artist with the exact same Ink, you might be able to guess what you’ll get. But even then? Studies’ve been done, and even then it’s not exact. There’s variables we don’t really understand.”

Internally, I groaned. “Fine,” I said instead, resuming my attention upon the list, making note of the most interesting or promising.

Serpentine: Dual Affinity: Change, Wisdom. Adjacent Concepts: preservation, renewal.

“Dual Affinities?” I asked, almost groaned. “It’s almost like they’re not even trying.”

“Haaa… yeah…” Kate responded, almost chagrined. “Might wanna skip those.”

“Oh?”

“They tend to be even more expensive,” Kate said.

“Are they that much better?” I asked, wondering who kept stock of such valuable gems, and if their theft would be traced back towards me if I stole them.

“Mmmaybe?” Kate said. “They give more freedom to grow, but not sure if they’re that better.”

“How would that fail to be a definite improvement over the other stones?” I asked.

She shrugged. “It’s more uncertainty with that freedom. For example with Serpentine. Are you focusing on changing or on being all wise ‘n stuff? If you want one over the other, then Serpentine prolly isn’t what you want. If you want some Glyphs one way, some the other, or if you wanna do a hybrid? Then Serpentine works. It’s just hardly ever someone wants some wishy-washy build like that.”

“If it’s not that desirable, then why would it cost an exorbitant amount?” I asked.

Kate shrugged. “Because of alchemy, maybe? Or it’s good for artifice?”

“You don’t know, do you.”

“No…”

Painite: Blood Affinity. Adjacent Concepts: fluid, sickness.

Painite disturbed my sensibilities in so many ways.

Sphaelerite (blackjack): Treacherous Affinity. Adjacent Concepts: wealth, water.

This one seemed useful, though how would people respond if they knew I had an affinity for treachery? Would they know? Questions to consider.

Danburite: Dual Affinity: Intelligence, Perception. Adjacent Concepts: clarity, speed, dexterity.

Useful. Intelligence and Perception would always be useful, especially if Danburite offered some nature of middle ground, using or providing both.

Chromite: Dual Affinity: Poison, Beauty. Adjacent Concepts: flexibility, softness, welcome.

Perhaps not.

Obsidian: Brittle Affinity. Adjacent Concepts: heat, dark, strength.

Brittleness did not at first glance appear desirable. Nor at the second or third glance.

Moonstone: Reflection Affinity. Adjacent Concepts: cold, bright, shadow

s.

Moonstone could be useful, given my Talents and Spells. I could easily visualize how I could take advantage of reflections to enhance my Illusions or my Stealth.

“So?” Kate asked.

I tore my eyes off the list. “It’s tough to say, with how vague everything is.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but of the general ‘feelings’ of the inks, which do you think matches your prospective Marks the best?”

“I saw one or two that seemed… interesting,” I said, thinking of Blackjack. “But still… how much would they cost, and more importantly, can people tell which ink was used?”

Kate waggled her hand. “They can tell a little bit, yeah. The material changes the pigment, but it’s not usually a sure thing, at least not from just looking at the Mark. Otherwise people would keep their Marks covered all the time. For the price though? Depends. Which ones are you thinking.”

I paused, hesitant to actually admit to wanting the stone with the Affinity for Treachery.

She wheedled, “C’monnnnn, tell me!”

I rolled my eyes and spoke a partial truth. “Moonstone seems promising. So did Danburite.”

“Not Chromite? Don’t wanna be a poisonous beauty?” she asked, hopefully joking.

I grimaced at the thought. “As tempting as it sounds–”

“-it actually pairs really well with Grace,” Kate added, cutting me off. “Especially for the more assassin-ish builds. Just sayin…”

“...no,” I said. “I have no inclination to murder.”

“Your loss,” Kate said, hopefully joking. “So just Moonstone and Danbuirte then?” she asked, tapping her chin. “Well, the second one, I can tell you right now, is godslovin’ expensive. Rare as can be, and pretty popular as is.”

“What of Moonstone?” I asked.

“That, you could probably find a good source of. You know how to check for material quality?”

No, I did not.

“Just don’t go cheap. And make sure the Sacred Artist is the one to grind it. Don’t go wasting money on pre-made pigment. So many scams that way.”

That sounded like good advice. I had not realized there were grades of quality on stones, though, in hindsight, that did make sense.

“Alright, now finally–” Kate started.

“-there’s more?!” I asked, already feeling as though we had been here for quite a while. “I’ll be late for my shift at this rate. What time is it even?”

“Relax,” Kate said, sneaking her arm around my shoulders and squeezing. “We’ve got plenty o’ time still. An’ this part’ll go quick. Promise.”

I almost shrugged her arm off, but decided that her arm was tolerable, in Kate’s oafish manner.

“So transmittance metals,” Kate continued. “We only got a couple to choose from, but we need to get the best we can get.”

“What are the options, and what does a ‘transmittance metal’ do?”

“Think of them like pipes surrounding the ink. The bigger the pipe, the better the flow.”

Similar to conductivity, perhaps? I thought.

“Cheapest is Copper and Aluminum. Kinda the all-rounder. In the middle is Silver ‘n Gold. All of them decent and fairly easy to get. Towards the more elite end you’ve got the High versions of the same metals, plus maybe Mercury ‘n Platinum.”

“I’m sorry, but ‘High?’ What is that, exactly?” I asked. I was fairly certain I had encountered High Silver previously with the Myst Egg bound to my ribs, at least according to the Inquisitor’s little torture session. I shuddered at the brief memory of that bit of powerlessness.

“Yep,” she said. “Straight from the Firmaments.”

I gave her a curious glance. The Firmament was the consistent overcast sky, the cloud cover that never broke. If the metals came from there, then did that mean they were meteorites? Such as the ancient ‘sky-iron?’

“Where are those reliably found then?” I asked.

Kate shrugged, “Mines. Go deep enough, and you hit ‘em.”

I was not quite sure what to make of that in regards to geological surveys and history, but I decided to accept it at the time being as their source had a limited effect.

“Don’t worry much though. You can find ‘em in the Mercantile Quarter, if you look hard enough. Expensive though.”

“About how much will I require?” I asked.

“Uhm… a vial of it?” Kate asked, clearly not knowing the proper unit of measure.

“Very well. I shall strive for a High Metal. But out of curiosity, how much of a detriment would it be to rely upon a more common variety?”

“Let’s just say if ya go with Copper, then you might as well go with Carbon as well.”

As she said that, and with much irreverence, she flipped the book closed and pushed it away.

“Now! There’s something I really wanted to show you.”

I winced.

“It’s not in your pants, I hope?” I said.

She coughed, “Whaa?” she said. “Pffsht, no, course not. I mean. Not unless…?” she gave me a questionable glance.

“No,” I said firmly, before remembering to be polite. “But thank you for the offer.”

“Well, good. Cuz that’s not what I was gonna show you, anyways.”

I gave a terse nod. “Very well. Is whatever you wanted to show me in this room?” I asked.

She shook her head, standing up and abruptly pulling me up to my feet as well. “Nah. Just follow me. Don’t wanna ruin the surprise.”

“...lovely,” I said, following her out from the small library.

At the very least, I thought, I would get to see more of the fortress.

Five right turns, three lefts, two flights up, one down, three more up, and we reached our destination.

Kate unbarred a door and pushed it outwards, revealing a gray sky covering a wind-swept balcony. We stood only three yards from the balustrade. Already, from what I had seen, I wondered, if perhaps, a particularly strong gust of wind could carry me up and away. I wondered, if perhaps, my Talent of Featherlight might not be such a boon.

Kate threw her arm back around my shoulders, beginning to pull me forward to the edge. I found myself clinging to her, if slightly, especially as the wind flared up and whipped my hair and jacket about.

“Beautiful, huh?” Kate said.

We reached the edge. Ordinarily, I would never feel this way. My Talents in climbing, combined with Inversion, mean that heights fail to impress me, at least under ordinary circumstances. But these, these were not ordinary circumstances.

My knees shook, and I pressed more tightly into Kate’s side. My jaw hung open.

Stretching out before us was the Chasm.

Other than the bridge to our right, there was nothing before us. The haze of atmosphere left the distance murky, and just barely could I see a shadow that might have been a horizon. But it also might not have been. To our left, far in the distance, the Cliff on the Midden’s side of the Chasm could be seen wrapping off in the distance. Far below us, in the cliff walls, there were a series of ramps, pulleys, and elevators carrying ores up and consumables down.

And that was it. Further down, it was just more cliff, until eventually, what must have been miles down, there was nothing but fog.

It felt as though we stood on the edge of the world.

“So?” Kate asked.

I shook myself from my reverie, and pulled away from her slightly. I schooled myself. I could not show such weakness.

“Whatchya think?” she asked, detracting from the awesome sight.

“I take it you don’t have a fear of heights?” I said wryly.

“Ha… well, the first few times I came up here maybe. But like I was gonna let anything like that boss me around. I showed it.”

“Showed it?”

“My fears. You gotta fight them, show them their place. Can’t let them rule you.”

I nodded slowly, “I expected nothing less from you.”

We continued to gaze out into the void for minutes. It was a time sink, perhaps a frivolous waste, but the sight was impressive. Taking Kate’s advice, I placed my hands against the stone balustrade and I leaned forward, so that my head hung over the edge. But this time did not necessarily need to be wasteful.

“Kate,” I said.

She leaned a bit in closer, watching me with far too much intent. I could not help but notice her lips glisten.

“Where is this Sacred Artist, and how do I go about gaining their services?”

Kate deflated slightly. “Well… this week? I’ll get you penned in for sure in a couple days, but…”

“But?”

“Like I said, it’ll be expensive. And you’ll need to get the materials on your own…”

I nodded, already worrying about ways that I could quickly gain wealth. I doubted there were any unlocked safes laying around in manors with thousands of Chargers waiting for sticky little hands.

“I would try to get a discount for you, but I probably can’t get the Knights to pay for anything, not unless you wanna join?” She added in an uncharacteristically tight voice and wince.

I shook my head, “Sadly, I find no interest for a long term commitment at this time. Did you have any other ideas for quickly gaining wealth? And how certain are you that I can get this appointment?”

“Very certain,” Kate quickly said. “Maybe not the discount. But the appointment itself, for sure. As for the funding, we can get you registered for Merc work!”

I gave a nonplussed stare. “Truly?” I asked. “You think they would have such a high value job on such short demand that could be accomplished in such a quick turn around time that would be either possible or anything but incredibly lethal?”

“Well… it’s just a thought. There was another way too…”

“We are brainstorming ideas, Sir Kate. Please, don’t refrain.”

“What if we head down to the Pits, I can enroll in a fight, and you can gamble on me. Or, we could do it vice-versa.”

“Pits?”

“It’s the arenas in the slums. Street fights type stuff. Well, I guess technically they’re in pits? But yeah. I go there all the time.”

Considering the issues I had had in the past with the Garnets, one of the Pit Crews, a gang operating in that area, I thought it best to refrain.

“Perhaps that can be my backup plan then,” I hedged. “But I might have options to gain enough wealth on my own.”

“Hopefully not… you know…” Kate said.

“Oh?”

“Like your ‘big-sis’ Esmerelda?” Kate said, emphasizing Esmerelda’s own self-deprecating and hopefully humorous endearment. When Kate thought I might not be tracking her insinuations, she came out bluntly and added, “Ya know… whoring?”

“I assumed that was what you alluded to,” I said dryly. “Rest assured, that is not on the table.” I resisted the urge to shiver against the thought.

After we brainstormed for several more minutes, I had a few private ideas for gaining the requisite funds, largely independent of anything Kate might know, especially as the best of my ideas were counter to law enforcement. We enjoyed the view off into the Chasm, and then Kate walked me back through the twists and turns and elevation changes until we exited the tower once more. From there we parted, and I quickly made my way back towards Ma’Ritz.

That night, I would need to deviate from my normal schedule. Especially if I were to quickly gain those funds.