Previously:
Kazimier and Nyssa visited the Nicean embassy.Inn of the Foxes, Silver Trailings, outside the Realm Below the Mountain
Satisfied with the fit of her new grey dress, clinging to her even as she walked, revealing the right amount of leg, Jyslyn began pulling her leather trousers on. She pulled her sleeveless tunic over her new dress, hiding the garment away. The dark elf covered the rest of her bare skin with her cloak and long gloves, leaving her head and red hair open. As she was tying her hair back, Jyslyn heard her door open. Out of instinct, her hand fell to the grey rod at her belt.
"Sorry, Jyslyn," Wren said. She held her hands away from her body to try to ease the dark elf. "I should have said something before I came in." The young elf cocked her head to the side. "Why are you dressed to go out?"
"I am going out."
Wren picked up her bow. "I'm going, too."
Jyslyn held up a hand to stop the young elf. "Not this time. Wren, I need you here. First, we're still waiting for a reply from the dwarves."
"But they might not answer at all!"
"I know, but we need to be patient." Jyslyn patted the young elf girl's shoulder. "The second is that where I'm going, it'll be too dangerous for you."
Wren crossed her arms. "And it's safe for you." Sarcasm laced her tone.
"It's not safe for me. It's not safe for anyone. I'll be safer than you would be, though. Wren, you are so innocent. I don't want to see you get tainted because of me."
"You're innocent, too, Jyslyn."
"Oh, Wren." Jyslyn pulled the young elf into a hug. "Wren, there is much about me you don't know. Maybe someday, I'll tell you, but for now, believe me, where I'm going isn't going to do much more to my soul like it would yours."
Wren returned the embrace. "I don't want you hurt."
"I won't be hurt." Jyslyn let go of Wren. "The other night, I saw someone skulking around on the street, one of my people. The two guardsmen patrolling didn't see him, but I did."
"Was he looking for you?"
"I doubt it, Wren. No one could know I'm here. I didn't know I'd be coming to Silver Trailings when I left the Sundered Chasm, so how could anyone else?" Jyslyn shook her head. "No, he's not looking for me. He could be involved in the conspiracy, but that's just me coming up with the worst of him."
Wren smiled. "Maybe he left the Sundered Chasm for the same reason you did."
"I would be overjoyed if that were true."
"What should I tell Kazimier when he gets back? You know he's going to ask about you."
"That's the third reason I need you here. Tell Kazimier that I needed to go alone. I think he'll understand."
"He's not going to like it, Jyslyn."
"I know. This is one of those times where there isn't any choice, despite the number of choices I have." Jyslyn hugged Wren one more time, lingering. "Don't follow me, Wren."
The young elf sighed. "How did you know?"
Jyslyn laughed. "You are a caring young woman, Wren, and you are worried about me." The dark elf walked to the window. "But, this time, I need to be alone. Just stay here and wait for Kazimier to return. Can you do that for me?"
Wren dropped on to her bed. "I can, if I have to."
"Thank you." Jyslyn opened the window. "I will come back. I promise."
"If you don't, I'll come find you."
"You would, too."
Jyslyn slipped out the window, standing on the ledge. She looked down at the cobblestone street a storey below her. No one walking below looked up. Taking advantage of the lack of attention, Jyslyn climbed up the wooden wall of the inn. Once on the roof, she laid down flat, hiding from view of the street.
The view of Silver Trailings from the roof took Jyslyn's breath away. She could see the canal through gaps in the buildings between it and her. The main gate and the Middle Gate loomed over even the tallest buildings in the trade town. The market was a sea of colourful tent tops snapping in the breeze. The Canal District's traffic picked up in the afternoon as more raw material came out of the Realm Below to be transfered to barges.
Jyslyn took note of the distances between buildings. Near the Inn of the Foxes, the there was enough room for hour horse-drawn carts to pass between buildings facing each other. The further into Silver Trailings, though, the narrower the streets became; in some areas, even a horse wouldn't have room to walk. Adjacent buildings had narrow gaps for the most part, with the odd home having a yard. Jyslyn planned her route to the Canal District. It would take her away from the marketplace and keep her out of sight of the guards in most areas, with shadows available to her for hiding when she needed them.
The dark elf leapt off the roof of the Inn of the Foxes, landing without a noise on its neightbour. Tiles threatened to slip, but Jyslyn kept her footing. From rooftop to rooftop, she travelled, covering the distance to the Canal District with every leap. She landed on a warehouse overlooking the canal. Crouching down, the dark elf surveyed the people below. People milled about, carrying boxes and crates. None seemed out of place. Jyslyn kept scanning the crowd. Someone had to be out of place.
Movement in the alley across the way caught her attention. Two men, both human, in rags slipped into the shadows afforded by the alley. A few moments later, another man in rough work clothes followed the beggars. Jyslyn settled her gaze on him. The young man looked familiar, somehow. The dark elf racked her memory, trying to place him. The discovery of the dead body from the previous day came to her mind. Jyslyn narrowed her eyes. The young man had been the one to find the body.
The young man returned out of the alley, tossing a coin pouch from one hand to the other. Jyslyn watched where he went as she waited for the beggars to re-emerge. The two ragged men came back out and went their separate ways. Taking one last look around for possible witness and finding none, Jyslyn climbed down from the roof of the warehouse.
The dark elf followed the young man as he made his rounds. The man stopped every few blocks, taking in a cut of the take from the district's beggars. He checked his surroundings as he walked. Jyslyn melted into the shadows whenever the young man looked her way. His last stop was an older building, its wooden walls weatherbeaten to grey. A sign hanging from a rusty chain displayed the tavern's name as a picture, a green haired woman with a cartoonishly generous bosom.
Jyslyn waited several minutes to see if her quarry would come back out. When he hadn't, she walked up to the tavern door. The building's windows had the dirt and grime of decades stopping the day's light from getting in. Jyslyn couldn't see inside; she reasoned that no one would see her until she entered at the same time.
The dark elf entered the tavern. The only light inside came from the lit fire in the hearth. A minstrel strummed his lute as a woman in a risque dress danced in an explosion of colour as her skirts flared. Jyslyn spied the young man she followed heading up to the second floor. She hurried to keep up.
Near the top of the staircase, a floorboard squeaked as Jyslyn stepped on it. The young man spun around, his hand grasping the hilt of his knife. Jyslyn's draw was faster. The dark elf dagger recovered from the corpse flew down the hall and drove itself deep into the young man's arm. He screamed in pain, clutching his wound.
Jyslyn lowered the hood of her cloak. "I believe that is yours." She approached, her right hand hovering over her grey rod. "Now, tell me where you got that dagger."
"We've paid our cut, Accursed!"
The dark elf backhanded the young man. "Watch your tongue."
The young man staggered back from the blow. "What are you doing here? We were told your Matriarchs were blind to our operation!"
"And you believed that?"
From behind her, Jyslyn heard a familiar voice ask, "Why wouldn't he?" The dark elf whirled around, her copper hair flying around her like an aura. Her hand grabbed her grey rod. A sword point stopped a hair's breadth from her throat. "Now, now, dear sister. Let's not be foolish." Biala smiled without warmth. "Valenza's looking forward to having a discussion with you about your disappearance."
Next Week:
Missive from home.
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