BETA READ
Date 15th October 3852 A.C.E.
“Where are we going?” asked Myst as he walked along the street with Nessa. Dodging between the crowds of people going about their day.
“We’re going to talk to Annette. She runs the Bard Syndicate.” Nessa sidestepped to avoid the two young kids running between them. “I talked to Al, and he thought it best that I reached out to her since the Teleporter Guild didn’t have any useful information.”
“Will she be as difficult as Zamir was?”
“No, I know her quite well. She will probably be the easiest of all the people we talk with. Just don’t be too thrown off by her. She is quite a… passionate person.”
“I can handle that. I’m getting the hang of this now.” Myst smirked at Nessa.
Nessa chuckled. “If you’re that confident then I should just leave you to do this on your own.” She gave Myst a tug on his arm, pulling him out of the way of a man rushing down the street.
“Hello!” said Annette, meeting them as they walked in the door. She was dressed in a colourful leopard print suit that hugged her slender frame and made her cherry blossom eyes look as though they were glowing. While her hair was tied up in an elaborate bun which added another few inches to her height. The golden rings and necklaces she wore rattled against each other as she leaned down and embraced Nessa with a long hug.
Annette turned to Myst, “And who is your lovely fellow here, Nessa? A friend or something more?”
Nessa blushed.
“My name is Myst. It’s nice to meet you, Annette.”
“And you, darling. But it looks like you’ve just been dragged off the streets.” Annette turned back to Nessa. “You didn’t want to give him some nicer clothes to walk around in?”
Myst answered before Nessa, “I’m quite alright with what I’m wearing. Thank you for your concern. I like the comfort of it, even if it isn’t the fanciest.”
“He’s from Middroania,” chimed in Nessa.
“That explains it. Middroanians aren’t exactly spoilt for choice, are they Myst?”
“Not really. We take whatever we can get our hands on. It’s not very often that we see merchants heading through, so for the most part, we make do with fixing up what we already have.”
“Well, I can’t have that. I won’t be allowing a friend of Nessa’s to be seen walking around Dartrin when I can offer you a fresh set of clothes. And the most stylish ones on offer in the city at that. Ones that will make you look like you didn’t just get out of a brawl.
“I’m afraid it seems that I find myself in quite a few brawls these days. I would hate to ruin such a nice gift.”
“Nonsense. The clothes we make are made to withstand such things. You’ll never see any of my bards looking anything but their best, even after the drunks cause trouble in the alehouses. I gave Nessa her clothes too. That red and black number is one I’m very proud of. Wouldn’t you agree that it fits her perfectly?”
Myst looked over to Nessa, “I-I…”
Nessa stepped toward the fabric-lined chairs behind Annette, “Why don’t we take a seat?”
“Yes, good idea,” said Annette.
“How have you been, Annette? Everything running smoothly as usual?”
“Always!” Annette laughed. “Not too much can go wrong when everyone wants to keep bards playing in their alehouses and along their streets. I got the sense that you wanted to speak of something important when you reached out. Are you finally going to take up my offer and join the Syndicate?”
“No, no. My loyalty lies with Al. You know that won’t change.”
“I know he has done a lot for you. But with my mother’s passing last year, I’ve changed this place. The expulsion of your family name no longer applies.”
“You will always have my friendship. And I will do what I can to help you when needed. But I can’t turn my back on Al, I owe him that. We came here to ask whether any of your bards had heard about a man called Shadow, or overheard a gang plotting to assassinate the Trinity?”
Annette sat quietly for a moment. “I have heard quite a lot of chatter about this Shadow. At first, there were talks of attacks that had happened around the villages on the outskirts of the city. Then the chatter ramped up after the attack at Al’s Alehouse. A lot of people are worried that they aren’t as protected anymore. Something as big as that, and on Al, the guy must either be crazy or working with someone powerful. Do you know why he attacked Al, Nessa?”
“I don’t, I’m afraid. Al hasn’t said anything about it either. Other than he thinks Shadow might be linked to another gang.”
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” said Myst. “Have any gangs been talking of an assassination plot?”
“Not on the Trinity. I don’t think anyone is stupid enough to consider making that big of a play… Although there have been some murmurs from one Shifter gang about claiming some new territory.”
“Whose territory?” said Nessa.
“From what I can decipher. It sounds like they want to make a play for Al’s. I suppose they see him as weak now that he’s had an attack on home turf.”
“Which gang is it?”
“The Felines.”
“I guess if it was going to be anyone it would be Victor that would try it. Explains why he came into the alehouse the other day.”
“The guy that stormed in after Luca was killed at the docks?” asked Myst.
“That’s him. He has a nasty temper. And is very unpredictable,” said Nessa.
“Annette, do you know when they were planning this for?”
“I don’t have an exact date. But Victor is not one for patience. I imagine it won’t be too long before he makes his move.”
“We better get this information back to Al,” said Nessa. “He’ll want to get ahead of it and make the first move. I’ll make sure he knows you passed this information along to us, Annette. He will appreciate it and will surely compensate you for your help.”
“That is much appreciated, Nessa. But, before you leave, may I have a word with you alone? If you don’t mind, Myst, you can wait by the door. We’ll only be a minute.”
“Of course,” said Myst. “It was nice meeting you, Annette. And thank you for the offer.”
“Anytime. My door is always open to a friend. I’ll have someone drop the clothes off to you in the morning.”
As Myst waited by the door he could see both Annette and Nessa quietly talking to each other. They glanced at him a few times as they talked. Not wanting to seem like he was trying to eavesdrop, he tried his best to only watch out the corner of his eye as he pretended to focus on the yellow flower that bloomed in the window. He couldn’t overhear any of what they were saying but he feared that Annette might be inquiring more about his eyes. Not everyone can be trusted, the words of the eye-patched Teleporter still played on his mind. Can I trust Annette? Surely, I can. Nessa trusts her.
“What was that conversation about?” asked Myst as he and Nessa were walking through the streets.
“She wanted to talk some more about business with the bards.”
“Nothing about me?”
“Why would you think that?”
“I saw you two glancing over my way.”
“That was nothing. Nothing at all. Just Annette getting a little too involved. Nothing you need to worry about.” Nessa picked up her pace. “We better get back to the alehouse quickly. I’d rather not waste any time before filling Al in on Victor’s plans.”
