(View the Guardians of Enthia page for a complete list of all chapters so far.)
The
first stop on Zeroi's grand trip was probably the most popular tavern
in all of Enthia: The Brothers Farmsworth. Though this perhaps was
the best decision Zeroi would have the knowledge of making, in
retrospect it was a pretty lackluster idea. More so, he decided to go
in still wearing his High Society regalia.
If
it wasn't already assumed, High Society members are not exactly
welcome at the tavern. In a world full of pirates, displaced
convicts, and men with fairly shady personalities, you could see how
a man such as Zeroi would not be welcomed; and he was not.
From
the very moment he walked in, scowls and angry looks stared into him.
As he moved down the hall to the center more and more looks were
given, and turn the halls grew more and more quiet. The tavernkeeper
himself sulked back, not wanting to be responsible over whatever was
to happen next.
“Hello,
I am here-”
The
young elf was stopped by a sharp shot of spit onto his forehead by a
buccaneer who was interested in hearing no more.
“Har,
shihnty! Ya think we're gonna lissen to you?”
'Shinty'
being a very profane, derogatory word for elf, you can see how Zeroi
was offended, and instantly went on the offensive.
“Well,
it's clear to see that your kind is fairly uneducated, but I have the
means to change that – don't worry.”
The
buc's hatred was intensified to molten levels upon seeing the high
scholar's smug look, and unhooked his axe from it's hold on his back.
“Wot
did you just say to me, ya damm'd shihnty!”
The
case would've gone that the elf's head would've been cut clean off
from the brute, and though in response the brute would've been
properly hanged and the establishment shut down, the High Society
itself would've been under much scrutiny. Fortunately for the High
Society, the owner of The Brothers Farmsworth, Zeroi, and probably
the brute himself, the attack was stopped when, just before the
swing, his weapon hand was impaled into a nearby column by a cloaked
stranger.
“God,
Gods! What in da... what in da hell!”
Before
the brute could recover from his injury in which the dagger used was
already removed, the owner of the dagger rushed Zeroi off the
premises and out into an alleyway two blocks away, for good measure.
“Well,
sir; thanks for the help back there-” It seems this was not Zeroi's
day for finishing sentences, as the mystery itself began to talk.
“Has
the Society decided to step on the lower class a little more, or are
you just mad?”
To
the Elondi's surprise, the voice was feminine; yet the owner of the
voice was still covered in a dark cloak, and as it was late it was
hard to see any face.
“N-no,
neither. You see, we – the High Society – believe the realm may
be under attack soon, a-and so we need able bodied me- people, to...”
“An
attack? Who is attacking?”
“Demons.
Ancient Demons. Well, I mean, it's a long story.”
The
cloak was finally removed, and it was revealed that there would be no
more tricks – the figure was indeed a woman, and an Acadian woman
at that.
“The
name is Alatricia.”
“Zeroi.
Mine's Zeroi.”
The
rogue seemed to inspect him closely. “Well Zeroi, it's clear you're
not used to the low life. You'll need a street urchin like me for
help in your recruitment, though I'm not sure I myself , nor anyone I
am connected to, has the ability to fight ancient demons.”
“Well
– well, that's the plan. The Society still has books from the ages
of the first invasion, that tell us of the creatures. We can train
you – all of you.”
Though
the young woman seemed eager to bring some excitement into her life,
she sighed. “One thing I am sure of is that most are not going to
like doing the work of the Society, and my voice is not one that they
would listen to completely, I only know who they are.”
“Do
you know one?”
“Yes,
I just said I did.”
“No,
no, not that. Someone who they would listen to.”
The
handstabber thought for a moment, before finding the spot in her mind
she was looking for.
