Snake, Scarab, & Sons: Purveyors of Fine T

"I can explain." Henry ducked, moving himself away from Hernan's fist. Part of this was to be expected.

"I told you not to remove the slip so early!" Ash called from the side. He felt a bit guilty, as it was him who created the slips that temporarily paralyzed Elka's brothers and cousins, but it was Henry who faced their wrath.

"Effie," he heard a little boy call out in a low voice to his sister. "Are you taking bets on who'll win?"

Ash recognized the boy as Richard, the son of Marquis Coutier. Effie made a silencing motion and whispered back. "Now is not the time...."

"Brother, can you stop? This wouldn't have been necessary if you insisted on following me everywhere!" Elka stood to the side, her face red to the tips of her ears as she glared at her brother. Brothers two and four were on either side of her, keeping her from jumping out to stop her third brother.

Ash looked at the two brothers and shot them a glare. "You're just going to stand there and allow your third brother to make a scene? There is a ball finishing not a few paces down the hall."

Elka's second brother returned his glare with a sneer. "If you want them to stop, then you stop them!"

Ash raised a brow. "All of you have just been released, but all right," he said as he reached into the inner pocket of his jacket. "If that's what you insist."

Several glowing slips were revealed. A few children who were watching, having seen Hernan rush out of the garden and followed. Their eyes lit up as they saw the slips.

"There they are!" Prince Max said with barely restrained excitement. "The slips!"

Across from them, several adult men froze in their spots. They seemed to suddenly realize what it meant when those pieces of paper were taken out and began to glow.

"Wait-"

"Hernan, hold back-"

A flurry of voices rang out, half telling Ash to rethink his decision as they prepared to run away, while the other half tried to stop Hernan to prevent the need of slip deployment. Unfortunately for them, their actions came too late, and the pieces of paper flew out.

Movements stopped and Henry now faced a man who had his arm raised in attack, but hadn't had the chance to follow through. The muscles of his jaw clenched as the fist in the air trembled, but he couldn't move beyond that.

"Richard, you asked about the immobility slip earlier, didn't you?" Ash asked, glancing at the boy. The child nodded his head vigorously as he looked at Ash with starry eyes. "Just so you notice something, a being has energy in movement and when you immobilize them, that energy has to go somewhere. It is pushed back against them and exerted as force from another part of their body, in this case, his feet have made micro-cracks in the tile."

Richard quickly scrambled to the floor to study the tile beneath Hernan's feet. His eyes widened. "I see a few!"

Prince Max frowned and glared at Hernan. "That is gold-veined marble from the cliffs off the coast. There is only one mine with gold-veined marble in the world. Do you know how much those tiles cost?"

"Current market value should be...five hundred or so dinari gold standard per tile of that size," Effie said, shaking her head. She looked at Hernan with a blank expression. "I hope you have enough money to pay for it."

"Five hundred?" Elka, the only person on her side who hadn't been immobilized with a slip, stepped back, as if the tile she was standing on would burn her. "For one tile? Is the tile made of gold?"

"That's not the most expensive tile in the world," Ash said. "The silver-veined black marble and mother of pearl inlaid tiles that lined the halls of the Celestial Kingdom's palace were worth at least a few thousand dinari gold standard before it sank. The craftsmanship is said to be lost, so finding one would be worth much more now."

The craftsmanship wasn't actually lost. There were several branches of royal craftsmen that survived and opened schools in West Wind Valley, keeping the art tradition alive and healthy, but specific art and decorative pieces, like the inlaid tiles, were prohibited from being created and sold outside of the Lunapsar Royal Family.

"What is going on here?" a woman's irate voice came from the stairs as she saw the awkward group of young men, Elka, and several children in a small circle. Those who could move bowed. Those who couldn't remained in place, and paled at the sight of the Crown Princess.

Prince Max perked up. "Mom! The third son of General Arelias damaged imperial property!" He excitedly pointed to the barely visible cracks on the tile that was beneath Hernan's feet.

Immediately, muffled noise came from Hernan's gritted teeth to try to protest the child.

Crown Princess Johanna took a deep breath, as is readying herself to deal with her son's antics. "Is no one going to answer my question?"

"Your Imperial Highness, Lieutenant Hernan Arelias attacked my brother," Ash replied. He was so calm and matter of fact, several muffled voices rose in volume to protest, lest the Crown Princess believe him so easily.

Crown Princess Johanna raised a brow as she stopped beside them and looked around. "Why did Lieutenant Arelias attack Young Master Atractas?"

With batting an eye, Ash answered. "Mental instability."

More muffled voices of protest came, and Henry sighed. "Your Highness, the Lieutenant is upset at me for dancing and going on a walk with his younger sister."

"Our walk was chaperoned! Madam Atractas was there!" Elka added. Ash knew his mother hadn't been there the entire time, but kept his mouth shut. After all, the others didn't know and couldn't verify that.

Crown Princess Johanna frowned and sent a disapproving look at Hernan. She then looked towards Ash and gave him a small nod. "Second Young Master, release them from your magic."

Out of respect, and the knowledge that Elka's brothers and cousins wouldn't dare to continue in front of the Crown Princess, Ash obeyed. He gave the older woman a nod to showed he agreed. He withdrew his magic energy from the slips, deactivating them.

Heavy breaths were released as a few cousins stumbled, as they'd been in movement when immobilized. Elka's third brother swung down, but Henry had long stepped away from him.

"Your Imperial Highness!" The Arelias men quickly turned their attention to the Crown Princess and bowed, shuffling into respectful positions so as not to seem too disheveled.

The Crown Princess looked at each of them with a cold, hard look. Her frown never left her face. "I don't care what happened, but the imperial palace is not your gladiatorial arena!" Her sharp voice made her subjects wince and shrink back, but Ash, Henry, and Effie stood there, unaffected. "It is a joyous occasion, so I will not pursue this matter, but there is to be no more conflict amongst you while here, else I will have you and your family removed from the festivities!"

They shuddered and nodded, muttering in agreement that they would obey.

The eldest of the small clan led the others away. One of Elka's brothers tried to pull her away, but she resisted.

She looked at Henry, but he gave her a nod, as if to tell her it was all right. She scrunched her nose childishly and hesitated, but conceded to go with her brothers.

The Crown Princess then looked at the children. She let out a low breath filled with exasperation. "Max."

"Mother."

The corner of the Crown Princess' eye twitched at her son's unapologetic response. "Why are you and young lords Leland and Richard here?"

Effie puffed out her chest. She took a few steps forward and bravely stood in front of her friends. "Beautiful Aunt, don't be upset. This wasn't Max's fault. It was mine. I wanted to hold Young Miss Arelias' brothers back so she could dance freely with Brother, and Max and the others helped me!"

Ash watched her little hands clenched the sides of her dress, as if bracing herself for a scolding despite trying to put on a brave face.

The Crown Princess studied Effie carefully and then turned to her son. "Is that true?"

"Yes!" Max answered at once and the Crown Princess flushed.

"You dare let a little girl take the blame!?"

Ash winced. "Imperial Highness, it really is our fault this time. His Highness and the young lords only wanted to help their friend and were caught up in our...shenanigans," he said, coming to their defense. He couldn't let Effie's precious friendships deteriorate because of a misunderstanding.

The Crown Princess studied Ash and then looked at Henry, who nodded.

"I did not think it through, Your Imperial Highness," Henry said. He bowed his head. "I apologize."

The Crown Princess took a deep breath. She looked at her son once more. "Go and take the others to play."

Prince Max let out a breath of relief. He grabbed Effie and Richard's hands, preparing to drag them away, but paused after two steps. He looked over his shoulder, at his mother, with uncertainty in his suspicious eyes. "You're really not mad?"

"Go play!" The Crown Princess threw her arm to the side and pointed down the hall, making Prince Max turn around and run. Once the children were gone, she looked at the brothers. "Tell me what happened."
The brothers glanced at each other. Henry took a step forward, a sign that he would explain. In clear and somewhat detached words, he explained the plan they'd produced after finding out Elka was there.

This was the first time he'd had a formal ball dance with Elka. Festival folk dances didn't count. When he was done, he apologized again.

Ash had watched the Crown Princess' face the entire time, and by the end of Henry's explanation, he'd pulled his lips into a tight line and looked at the Crown Princess with judging eyes.

The same spark of excitement and slightly too much interest that was in the Dowager Empress' eyes when she shared and consumed gossip was all over the Crown Princess' face. Though her lips were kept in a tight line, likely because she was holding herself back, her eyes were glistening as if listening to the most enthralling story.

She is certainly her grandmother's grandchild. Ash pursed his lips.

The Crown Princess restrained her excitement and gave them a small wave of her hand to dismiss them.

The two brothers walked towards the stairs leading to the ground floor.

"Next time we have a plan, let's try to make it more discrete," Henry said as he began down the stairs. He said it, but didn't sound regretful.

Ash smirked. "At the very least, it looks like she'll support your relationship with Young Miss Arelias. If only for entertainment."

"My relationship is not for entertainment purposes."

"Maybe not for you."

Henry turned to shoot him a glare, but Ash looked to the side, as if there was something fascinating about the paintings on the wall.

They reached the bottom of the stairs and headed towards the grand ballroom. They slipped inside easily and swept up some wine glasses from a passing server before going out towards the balcony.

Just a few minutes in the ballroom and it was getting too warm and stuffy. There were plenty of other guests outside the open glass doors and chatting amongst themselves near potted plants, statues, and pergolas wrapped in climbing vines with white flowers that bloomed at night.

They walked down some stone steps to the lower garden, discussing in quiet voices what needed to be done in Dareisol before they left for Shae.

They'd been there before, but always by ship. Most of the Merchant Cities were bustling coastal cities, so the most convenient way to get to one was by ship. Even when his family was trekking across East Iveria, they hadn't gone to Shae by land route.

From Soljek, they would travel across Dareisol, west to east, then travel below a mountain range that separated northern Dareisol from the large swath of land made of hundreds of states. They were small kingdoms, principalities, and city-states. Half of them were always fighting for one reason or another, but the fighting typically didn't reach the area that bordered Dareisol and Suna, with the exception of an area close to Ashtar.

That region was also affected by a blight on staple crops that caused the famine in Ashtar. It was a turbulent area and part of Nera's father's army was nearby, but due to the lack of food in the region, troops were not permanently stationed there.

"Mom says that there will likely be more Ashtari visitors at this year's Invitational because of how close Shae is to Ashtar," Ash told his brother before taking a sip of his wine. "Do you think they came through Suna?"

Ashtar had a southern coast. It was on the southernmost coast of East Iveria, but the ocean around it was cold and dangerous. The coastal area was constantly battered by high winds and storms coming from the south pole. Ships routinely sank around the southern coast of Ashtar, making the entire southern coast a terrible location to build port cities.

Most vessels, including their trade ships, would go north, over the far more placid waters of the northern seas. Though cold with glaciers, the waters were still much calmer and the winds less fierce.

The most suitable areas to have a port city that far south was in the Suna Kingdom, and, from what the family had gathered, Suna was not very friendly with Ashtar, especially as of recently with their suspicious military movement.

"Many of those who are seeking opportunities abroad had left earlier, so it's possible they're coming from elsewhere," Henry replied. He peered out into the gardens. "Auntie really planned this out."

Ash let out a hum. "We could've settled anywhere. Dareisol welcomed us with open arms. We could've stayed with our people in the West Wind Valley, or on our land in Iota, but she specifically went out of her way to get us citizenship to Carthage Harbor."

"If you want to make any sort of business dealings, large or small, you go to a Federation of Merchant City," Henry agreed. He squinted. "She knew someone would come because Ashtar can't isolate itself forever...and to attract their attention, she built the most prosperous trading empire in decades."

Ash sipped his wine and threw his brother a look. "Momma just likes money."

Henry rolled his eyes. "It isn't as if we don't need money to go back."

"I didn't say it was a bad thing," Ash replied.

Henry sighed. "Auntie funded and built a secret army and navy."

"Brother, don't forget who Momma is," Ash told him. "She may be our mother day-to-day, but she's still the Queen of the Lunapsar. The resources were always there, she just had to activate and move them."

"You say it as if it's such an easy task," Henry said with a slight chuckle.

"Well, she does it for good reason," Ash said. "First, obviously, you are her son, though not by blood. You, and I...and our sisters...and the aunts, actually, will only really be safe when you take your rightful place." He watched Henry nod his head solemnly, knowing the weight of expectation on his shoulders. "And second...hate and spite can really drive someone."

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Henry let out a small snort. "Yes, you would know...." He paused and raised a brow. "Auntie has a grudge?"

Ash shook his head. "Oh, it's not a grudge. It's a burning hatred," he replied. "Don't let her calmness fool you. No one, not you, nor I, likely hates that Old Bastard more than Momma."

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"You're being called back?" Effie's face fell as Soraya's words reached her ears at breakfast. She lowered her utensils and looked at her godmother with big blue eyes that seemed to elicit the most heartache.

Soraya could only look away. "I wanted to go with you to Shae to watch the Invitational, but the Holy Order has given me an assignment in my region, so I have to go."

Effie's shoulders sank as she looked down at her waffle slathered in syrup. "I'm going to miss you...."

Soraya let out a painful cry and hugged her goddaughter. Across the table, Nera sipped on her morning tea as Henry and Ash silently ate their breakfast.

"The cross-continent carriage and support wagons reached Solyek Port yesterday," Nera said, appearing to ignore the dramatic two across from her. "I'm going to go with Effie to pick it up, so we'll be back in two days with the vehicles and our guards. Are you sure you two don't want to come?"

Ash let out a disinterested grumble. "There are some raw materials shops here I want to check out. There is a lot to cover before we leave."

Henry nodded. "And I also have plans."

"Brother has a date with Elka." Effie's not-so-quiet whisper was heard around the table and Henry shot her a glare.

"It's not a date. She asked me to help her at the weapons corridor," he told his sister firmly.

Effie squinted at him, clearly doubting his words.

"All right, but if you need anything, send a raven," Nera told them.

"Nera," Soraya said from across the table. "Let me bring Effie."

"No." Nera replied at once with an annoyed look. "We'll see you off." Soraya sighed, disappointed, but released her little goddaughter so she could finish her waffle.

A rental carriage was ready to take Nera and Effie to the port. It would go through the west gate, which was the direction Soraya was heading out of. After parting from them, Ash and Henry headed towards the artisan quarter near the north gate. Aside from selling everything from homeware to fabrics, and the crafts people who could be hired to work with them, there were several smaller markets within the quarter that sold the raw materials Ash was looking for, and an entire block where weapons of all kinds were commissioned and sold.

"I want to stop by the Adventurer's Guild to see if there are any messages for me," Ash said as they crossed the center of the city. "In case there is something lucrative."

Henry looked at Ash with a curled lip. "Didn't Effie just make you a lot of money at the Mage Duel?"

"I have many investments!" Ash said with a scoff. He began to count them off his finger. "Moonflower, Smiya Shallows, research funding, Effie's medicinal plant processing center, raw materials-"

"I believe you." Henry cut him off and rolled his eyes. "If you find something, make sure it's quick. You need money, but we don't have much time to spare right now." They had supporters to contact, Ashtari business to infiltrate, and a military to prepare. Henry checked his pocket watch. "I can't stay. I need to meet Elka outside the weapons corridor."

"That's a weird place for a date."

"It's not a date! I'm helping her select some arrows and pick up her spare bow," Henry said, sounding more insistent then when he'd replied to Effie.

"Henry!" An excited voice called out to them just as they crossed the street. They were still a good distance from the artisan quarter, but Elka was waving an arm and beaming.

It seemed she was on her way to meet Henry.

"Huh..." Ash looked around, turning his head from side to side.

"What?" Henry glanced at him after waving at Elka in response.

"She appears to be alone."

"So?"

"So, either she sneaked out for you tryst-"

"We're running errands!"

"Or she's being followed." Ash smirked and continued to stand on the street corner, scanning for signs of half-elven men and possible Arelias cousins hiding in the crowds or peeking from around buildings.

His last words made Henry tense a bit. He narrowed his eyes and followed Ash's gaze. "Second Young Master is here, too. Are you joining us to look at weapons?" Elka reached them and paused, noticing they were distracted and turned to see what they were looking at. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong." Henry snapped his attention back to her and gave her a gentle smile. "Have you made a list of the places we need to go today?"

Elka was quiet for a moment as she stared at his face, as if taking it in. After a moment, she nodded. "The last stop will be Thresher's armory. They told me the new arrows will be ready for pick up this afternoon."

Henry's eyes crinkled up with mirth. "Good, we'll have time to go to dinner afterwards."

Elka's cheeks reddened. "You're taking me to dinner?"

Ash's lip was curled up with distaste as he watched his brother and his brother's...romantic partner, he supposed, talk to each other in sweet, sticky voices that made his skin curdle. The two were so close, they were almost touching, and Ash feared they'd kiss in front of him.

Ugh. Ash's face scrunched and he took a step back. "Well, I'm going to go to the Adventurer's Guild. You two have fun on your 'errands'." He rolled his eyes, deciding not to get involved with the two that day.

Henry could deal with the two brothers and cousin he'd spotted tailing Elka by himself.

Elka looked genuinely surprised. "You're not going with us to the artisan quarter? I thought you wanted to look at raw materials."

"I need to check in with the Guild for something," Ash lied, his eyes crinkling up as Elka placed her hand over Henry's heart so naturally, it was as if she did it often. Ash quickened his step, wanting to be anywhere but there. "Don't worry about dinner! I'll grab something on my way back to the inn! Bye!"

Was he running from his brother? Of course not. He was just walking faster than normal. He drowned out any of Henry's protest or further questioning, weaving through the sides of the street to get to the Adventurer's Guild.

The Adventurer's Guild in Dareisol's capital was the largest in the world. Its full area comprised four square blocks, including a large inn, a store for basic supplies and repairs, a clinic, and the regular lobby and offices that all Guild locations had.

Upon walking inside, through the large, wooden double doors, he was met with a wide foyer with a vaulted ceiling and a tiled mosaic floor bearing the insignia of the Guild. Signs directed him in the direction of the request lobby, where he could check in to see if there was anything left for him or scour the quest board for local and international quests.

It was directly left of the foyer and through another set of open double doors, though they were smaller than the main entrance.

The request lobby was massive with a row of counters with windows that stretched across the length of the lobby. There were many round tables with chairs, benches, and across on the opposite wall of the window counters was a quest board organized by difficulty and location.

The board reached from his knees to about an arm's length above his head, and familiar guild quests were posted in neat rows. Dozens of people; humans, elves, beast people, and the like were perusing the quest board for jobs. Each quest had to be reviewed carefully, as each one had specific requirements that needed to be met.

Just because a quest paid a lot didn't mean that the party could just take it at will. They needed to be qualified enough to take it. If they didn't meet the skill requirements, they'd be refused the quest, as it was too dangerous to let unskilled parties take on quests that were above their skillset.

Ash usually looked for mid to high level part time magic work, mainly for retrieval quests. They weren't too long, and the pay was good for a part-time mage. His rank was high, but not as high as it really was. He'd asked Drae at the Guild back in Carthage Harbor not to list his rank as Triple-S, which is what he more than qualified for, so as to avoid being targeted by individuals who wanted to get a powerful mage on their side.

Also, Triple-S adventurers tended to get the worst, most dangerous jobs with the lowest danger to payment ratio. It really wasn't worth it.

Ash Atractas' rank was listed as 'S', a full two levels down. S-level mages at the Guild had the best danger to payment ratio, and the parties that hired them tended to be settled and work well with each other, thus generally making them easier to work with for a short period of time.

As Guillermo von Sails, who was listed as an A rank magic tool artisan, he focused on magic products, but Ash was open to any small quests in the area while waiting to leave for Shae.

He stood in front of the board for local quests and began scanning for quests that fit his criteria. After getting a third of the way through, he found himself frowning. Nothing seemed interesting, or if it did seem interesting, the way was too low. This was unexpected in a big city, where local quests often paid higher than in rural areas.

"Is there some sort of recession happening...?" Ash rubbed his chin.

"Ash!" His head snapped up. Few people had his name. It was a modified version of his birth name, which was Ashtari, so it wasn't a common name in Dareisol. He heard his name called again and this time, he turned around to try to find who was calling him. "Ash, is that you?"

His eyes focus on a young man with unruly brown hair and dark circles under his yellow eyes standing in line to get to the counter windows. He wore wrinkled, but clean clothes of a normal citizen, standing out from the more heavy-duty fabrics, light armor, and leather of the other adventurers around them.

"Reggie?" Ash squinted at the familiar figure to make sure he identified the right person, and then smiled when he confirmed it. It was always nice to see an old party member. "You made it to the capital!"

"Ash!" Reggie's eyes widened and he abandoned the line. He wove his way through the people standing around the lobby, making a beeline to Ash.

Ash grinned, though confused. Reggie was at least halfway through the line and would lose his place if the people behind him didn't let him back in. "It's good to see you. Did you get accepted into the conservatory-"

"Ash, I need your help!" Before he could finish his sentence, Reggie grabbed his arm, nearly pulling him down as he stumbled to a stop.

"Hold on! Calm down!" Ash held on to Reggie to help stabilize him, then furrowed his brows and met his gaze. "What's going on? Are you alone?" He looked past Reggie, towards the line, expecting to see someone from Reggie's party nearby, but didn't see any more familiar faces.

"They're gone! Ash, I need your help!" Reggie's grip on Ash's arms was strong, but trembling.

Ash frowned and narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean they're gone? Where did they go?" He looked around and noticed that several people in line and around them were looking over after Reggie's panicked yelling. Ash let out a low breath. "First, let's take a seat."

Still shaken, Reggie nodded, allowing Ash to lead him to one of the few vacant tables along the far wall. Once he was seated, Ash activated a slip and put it on the table.

"What is that?" Reggie asked. His hand had been pried off Ash's arm and was now gripping on to the edge of the table.

"Silence sphere," Ash replied. "Now, tell me. What's going on? Why are you here alone? What happened to the others?" He cocked his head to the side. "Aren't you here because you wanted to go to the music conservatory?"

That had been one of the reasons Reggie and his party had taken the quest to retrieve an urn from a dragon in the Dragon Continent. Wills had been trying to earn money to put his younger brother through school.

Reggie was pale as he nodded. "I got accepted, but on the way here for my enrollment, my brother and Brenda got into a fight, and she left the party."

Considering what he knew of Brenda, Ash was surprised she hadn't left the party sooner. She always seemed as if she felt she was better than everyone else, including Wills, the party leader.

"What about the others?"

Reggie seemed to search the area in front of him for answers. "Clyde and Alana said that Brenda would come back. She always has in the past."

Ash squinted. "So...this is common for her."

"Sometimes, she becomes impatient, or my brother won't agree to take on a job she wants. As a result, she leaves the group until my brother gives in or she's no longer angry," Reggie said. "She knew we were heading here, so we thought she'd come and find us. My brother took me to enroll. I had my paperwork done and we were looking at dormitories near the conservatory when Alana came to find us. She came to the Guild to look for quests they could do and check to see if Brenda checked into the local Guild. Brenda did check in, but she checked in with another party!"

"As a temp?"

"As a permanent member!"

Ash let out a low whistle as he drew his head back. It was one thing for individuals like him to join parties temporarily, but for a core party member to join another party permanently? Even if they parted on good terms, others would question their loyalty and dedication to the team.

Poaching party members was an adventurer's faux paus, as was party jumping. They were heavily looked down on.

Ash knit his brows. "Did she formally resign from the party?"

"She did, but we didn't know until Alana checked," Reggie replied, almost rambling. "She didn't notify us, she just pulled herself out of our party and joined another."

"What was the argument that angered her to the point of leaving the party?" Ash asked.

Reggie lowered his head, and his body seemed to shrink down. "After the quest for the urn on the Dragon Continent, with the share of the money my brother and I earned, we were able to pay the tuition fees and supplies for three years in the conservatory, which is the amount of time for my bard musician track. Wills thought he had some money left over which he planned to use for a ring to officially propose marriage to Brenda. Brenda knew about this. However, Dad broke his leg after he fell off our neighbor's roof while repairing it, so my brother gave my parents money.

"My dormitory is also more expensive than we expected, as I missed the deadline for the shared rooms, which were the cheapest option. I wanted to pay for it myself, but my brother said I needed to keep money for food and day-to-day living expenses. He offered to pay for this year and next year, we'd re-apply for a shared room. This drastically cut into the ring money and would delay its purchase. Brenda accused Wills of only caring about his family and not her."

Ash took a deep breath. "To be fair, it does sound that way."

"It's not!" Reggie sat up straight and looked at Ash with a pleading expression. "Brenda's older brother got into some legal problems, which drained their family's coffers. They had to pay with land and money, which caused her mother to become ill. She has numerous younger siblings to support, as well, so Brenda has been sending them some of her earnings. She joined the party because of this.

"However, her brothers kept getting into trouble. Gambling, failed business ventures, someone slept with someone else's wife, and it was a whole thing...her family kept asking for more and more, and because they planned to marry, Wills supplemented Brenda. Brenda never pays for anything while we adventure; Wills pays for her."

"So, your brother has been paying for her and for some of her family?" Ash asked.

Reggie nodded. "Her second brother found some business opportunity, or so he says, and is asking for money to invest. Considering his record of bad business decisions, Wills refused. Wills sent money before, and the so-called business opportunity failed. Besides, there is our own family that needs support now. Brenda didn't take his refusal well and stormed off."

Ash tapped his fingers on the table. "Were your brother and the others planning on doing more quests after you joined the conservatory?"

Reggie nodded. "Yes, that was always the plan. It wasn't as if there wouldn't be more chances to make money. The share would also be larger, as it would be split in fourths instead of fifths."

"Hmm...then, perhaps she just saw another party as more lucrative despite that," Ash said. He looked across the table at Reggie. "But what does this have to do with the others going missing?"

Reggie ran a hand through is hair. "Wills and the others went to the Guild to wait for Brenda and demand answers. The party she signed up to join returned, but claimed that she didn't want to be in their party any longer and would take on temporary positions. I believe this is like what you do."

"Yes, but she'd still need to formally resign from her current party. Then she needed to register that she was an independent contractor."

"They had the papers!" Reggie's eyes were wide and frantic. "They said that Brenda asked them to file it on her behalf, but when Clyde saw the papers, he noticed that her signature was wrong, and it was missing her seal. All of us have seals. They claimed that she said she lost it. Wills didn't believe them and almost started a fight here, demanding to know where Brenda went."

"Did they tell you?"

"They said that Brenda told them not to tell anyone where she went because she was in danger."

"From you?" Ash's incredulous voice lowered, and he almost sat up, affronted on their behalf. He'd spent a good deal of time with them, and they were not dangerous. Reckless-dangerous, but not malicious-dangerous. They certainly wouldn't cause bodily harm to a party member, even if that party member abandoned them.

Reggie nodded, defeated. "Clyde had to pull my brother away. Alana did some investigating on her own and found that they'd gone to the Seni Range to get a bottle of great fairy spring water for some local noblemen."

Ash felt his blood run cold. "Great fairy spring?" His eyes narrowed. "Which one?"

Reggie looked confused for a moment and then knitted his brows to try to remember. He shook his head. "I'm not sure, but Alana said the noblemen had paid an astronomical amount for it. More than a regular bottle of fairy spring water."

Ash's leg began to bounce up and down beneath the table. "That's because some spring fairies demand payment that is more expensive than others." Depending on the strength of the spring fairy, their water could do things as simple as enhance the taste of food to heal fatal wounds.

There were even rumors that some fairy spring water brought back the dead.

"Alana and Clyde assumed it would be the most effective of the fairy springs, so narrowed it down to two. Before they left, Wills told me they were going to find Brenda, as they were concerned she had gotten into trouble. I offered to come, but he said I should remain and go to class." His face filled with heartbreak as his eyes reddened. "He said we've all worked so hard so I could get here...the effort can't be for naught."

His voice began to choke into a cry and Ash clenched his jaw. It wasn't that he wasn't touched by Wills' love for his little brother. He knew firsthand how powerful brotherly love was.

However, if Wills, Alana, and Clyde had indeed gone to search for Brenda, and to the two fairy springs that would likely demand the highest price, then the price they'd pay for a bottle wouldn't be small.

"Reggie...those fairy springs...they don't just ask for jewels or gold," Ash said in a low voice. There were plenty of people willing to pay their weight in gold for life. "For the fairy springs that heal...that can bring a person back from the gates of the underworld, they ask for an equal exchange."

Reggie seemed to freeze in his seat. His pupils shrank before his shoulders began to tremble. "What?"

Ash looked at him with some reluctance. "If the fairy spring is the one I'm thinking of, they will require an equal exchange. If the water was for healing, it will ask for blood...and if it's to bring a near or recently deceased person back from the dead, they will ask for a life."

Reggie took a sharp breath. His body began to shake as he shook his head from side to side. "No...no-"

"It would explain why the other party didn't return with Brenda."

"Ash!" Reggie's hand shot across the table and grabbed his arm once more. "You have to help me! They were supposed to be back by now, but I haven't received word. The Guild hasn't received any communication either. I can't think of anyone else to go to!" His eyes brimmed with tears as he choked back his cry. "I came here to try to send you a message to ask for your help. I'm too weak! I can't go alone-"

"Okay, okay, calm down," Ash said, raising a hand to try to stop him. "Take a deep breath...inhale...hold...exhale...." He led Reggie through some breathing exercises to help him relax. Once he noticed that Reggie had calmed, he let out a heavy sigh. "The Seni Range is three days from here. I didn't plan to take any quests longer than a day or two. I'm not here alone. My family is headed to Shae for the Invitational."

"Ash, please-"

"I didn't say no." Ash gave him a knowing look. "Get in line and create a formal quest, just so if anything happens, the Guild can provide some assistance. When you get it, bring it to me and I'll accept it. It's a missing persons quest, write all four members, understand?"

"Yes!"

Ash took another deep breath and exhaled. He reached forward and picked up the slip on the table, deactivating it and putting it back into his pocket.

"Go and submit the quest. I need to contact my family and see if I can get additional help," Ash told him.

"Help? From whom?" Reggie asked, standing on shaking legs.

Ash stood up and looked towards the window. "My big brother."

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Henry couldn't help himself and sneezed. He turned his head to the side and sneezed into his elbow to avoid spraying everywhere. In front of him, in the narrow aisle surrounded by boxes of different styled, shaped, and sized arrowheads, Elka turned around and raised a brow.

"Is there too much dust here?" she asked. Henry was holding a woven basket with various arrowheads already inside while Elka compared two different ones in her hands.

Henry shook his head, but looked towards the open shop face that opened into the main street of the weapons corridor. "No, I just feel like I'm missing something."

Elka raised a brow. "Are you still thinking about that precision diamond file blade grinder?"

"It adjusts to fit different blade types, but no, that's not it," Henry said, distracted.

Elka returned the arrow heads and then raised a hand and placed it on his upper arm. She squeezed his bicep gently. "I'm sure it's nothing too serious. You have a lot to think about right now."

Henry blinked and looked back at her, the corners of his lips curling up. "Well, you are one of them."

Elka flushed. "You...." She leaned forward and shoved her face in his chest, giggling to herself as the tips of her ears flushed. He chuckled and leaned down, giving her head a quick kiss.

"I'm sure you're right," he said. "It's probably nothing."