Letters and Legacy (Black, Ricky)

[Jadlin Hayes]

Jadlin Hayes

37th day of Fall, 514

Jad was due for an afternoon shift at one of the other warehouses. Normally he worked the afternoon where the goods stocked for his actual employer, Mr. Pelthes, were kept. The old hunter had gone into leather working years earlier, and now provided a number of worked leather items for sale. His share of the main warehouse covered both finished products, armor, saddles, belts, gloves, etc.; and the unworked materials used to make such things.

There were a number of other merchants that made up the bloc of contributors to covering the cost of a trio of warehouses. The employees of any of these merchants had a secondary obligation to provide after-hours guard duty at a rotating schedule of the three different locations. This was outside of the regular guard/laborer duty each man worked at their own specific workplace.

In Jad's case, he was employed by 'Pelthes' Pelts', Zelitva's premiere leather working provider. But this was not the duty ahead of him this day. He was on the rotation to pull guard duty into the following morning at the warehouse for an unrelated group of merchants across town. It was going to take most of his intervening time to make it to the building, but if he hurried, he could spare the time for a mug of Kelp beer. He even surprised himself to find a sense that it didn't taste as bad as the time before that. And that better than the time before that.

But arriving at the Kelp Bar, it never chanced that he had the opportunity to develop his taste for the odd brew any further. A man sat at a table with a pair of unfamiliar friends. Jad recognized the one man as being another of the guard duty rotation team; one named "Corven". He approached with a grin, thinking to buy a round for the table and embark on a comically exaggerated account of the woes of being a warehouse guard on night shift. Mostly an epic struggle against the deadly ravages of severe boredom.

It never came to that however, as not long after the round of kelp beers arrived, Jad asked for the key to the warehouse in question. Corven looked blankly for a moment before realizing that Jad was talking to him. "Huh? The key? You mean to the storage site? Why would I have it? You were supposed to get it from Mr. Henry last night after your shift."

Jad was suddenly concerned, "How could I? No one came by to drop it off. Not Flynn, or Krenny or even Terrill. Mr. Henry wouldn't have delivered it himself! Nor did anyone say I had to go across town to get it from him. Mr. Pelthes said I was supposed to get it from you."

Corven chuckled conspiratorially with his chums, "Would'a been nice if he'd-a mentioned it to me." His buddies laughed along with him. Jad couldn't help but add a snort of taxed amusement at the snafu. There was nothing to be gained by blaming Corven for it. The fact was, he could easily see it developing exactly as it apparently had.

"Shyke!" Jad cursed, "I guess I'd better get hoofin' it over there then." He tipped back the mug and guzzled it down, wiping his mouth on his sleeve to the appreciative guffaws of his table-mates.

"Thanks fer the round, mate." They called after him, receiving a wave in return as Jad exited the building. The problem was not only the distance to the "Storage Site", as Corven had called it, it was the fact the Jad didn't know which man had neglected to give him the key. It could have been either Mr. Pelthes, his own boss, or Mr. Henry. And they lived on opposite sides of town.

He'd been planning to go by the grotto on the way, to get his gear. An idea started to grow in his mind, but he did not know how it would be received. His girlfriend, Black, was a Kelvic, a horse Kelvic, to be exact. He'd only seen her horse form a couple of times. He'd gotten the impression that she did not want to shift while in town. She felt too conspicuous, and felt that she might suffer discrimination, or worse, if her secret got out.

It occurred to him though, that since she'd lived here longer than he had, she might know of some sort of messenger service. Jad knew he could get to the 'Storage Site' on time, even stopping by Mr. Pelthes shop on the way to ask about the key. But there was no way he could include a trip in the opposite direction, to see Mr. Henry, as well.

He decided, as he reached the Grotto, that he would ask her if she knew of any quick way to send a message across town.

x

[Black Onyx]

Black was lying upon her bed inside of her room at The Grotto while she simply stared up at the roof above her head. It was a plain roof that much she did note about it, but that was all for her thoughts were elsewhere. Gripped in her right hand, was a silver linked bracelet that had a small ruby on the end of it. Slowly she drew in a breath, feeling it expand her lungs before she exhaled, repeating this process a few times. It was a little breathing exercise that she did in order to calm her thoughts from a nightmare that seemed to grip at her every night, or whenever she tried to sleep. Finally a sigh fell upon her lips and she pushed herself up into a sitting position, her right hand gently tucked the bracelet under her pillow before it lifted up to cover her pale face. Why did it haunt her? Why didn’t the nightmares just leave her alone? She questioned this for a moment before her hand slid up along her face to then slide into her black locks, her finger tugging at them as she pondered the dream for a brief moment. Finally, she decided that dwelling upon it was doing her no good.

She twisted her form to place her bare feet upon the floor, wincing as she accidentally bumped her left arm. Her nostrils flared as she held back a whimper before she moved to stand and dress herself in her usual garb. Once this task was done, she lifted her left arm, only to simply slide it into her makeshift sling made from a simple black scarf. Once this task was complete, she moved to quickly run a comb through her thick mane of black locks. Each stroke became slower and slower until she finally stopped in this task, her gaze staring out of the open window within the room, the sunlight softly streaming in through the window frame. The light reminded her of Ricky and the conversation that they had, it had basically only happened because Ricky had lost his son’s toy and she just simply guessed as to where it was. A guess that was all and it had made the family so happy that they thanked her quite a lot. In all honesty, she had wished that they hadn’t thanked her, for it made her job of remaining indifferent to the suffering of other people, a lot harder.

Finally, she placed the brush back into its place within her cupboard before she made her way out of the door to her room, remembering to lock it securely behind her. The young equine was a thief and everything she owned, she had worked to get it by mostly stealing it or buying it with stolen mizas. She turned and made her way down the corridor and stairs. She was reminded then, that she did need to get a new cloak, for hers was slightly torn considering that she had torn off some material in order to wrap it around her burn, the burn that continued to throb. This throbbing pain made her remember the conversation that she had had with Ricky, Jadlin’s brother. Ricky wanted her to become much more than what she already was, to do better than thieving, however she didn’t see how she could do better. Although, a small hope seemed to linger within at the thought that she might be able to do more, that she could do more if only she tried just a little bit. Silently, she exited the building and stopped for a moment to allow the afternoon sun to fall down upon her. Drawing in a slow breath, she closed her eyes for a moment to lift her chin and enjoy the sunlight for just a moment before the darkness drew upon the city of Zeltiva once again.

Word Count649

[Ricky Maze]

With the way his day ended all that remained was for Ricky to enjoy a bit of personal time that he had with his family, as the usual schedule he followed daily continued to carry on its same repetition with the same sense of glorification he found. Compared to some who might've looked for a bit more excitement in their day, Ricky had definitely found that he'd enough of it in his lifetime already. Thus when the patrols would end and the papers back at the head quarters were filled and signed, his routine went with a bit of silent praise to Gnora for keeping it simple and orderly compared to the trifling matters he's dealt with in the past. That goes without saying there wasn't a bit of apprehension found in the process, as the quiet generally did best in inviting trouble on his doorstep before some major event happened.

And so the father sat at the middle of his bed and watched as the child before him played around, his interest in the larger index finger Ricky possessed somewhat varied as he often stuck the tip of it within his mouth. "Yer always stuffin' t'ings in yer mouth boy, but Oi suppose dat's one way ye learn 'bout t'ings." He surmised as he leaned down to kiss the child softly on the top of his head, a soft pull back from the boy so that he could use the hand the finger belonged to for a second. The father then watched Martin as he connected with the glowing mark that swirled about on the back of his hand, a soft ball of light glowed gently in front of Martin as the child laughed excitedly at the sudden appearance. Ricky chuckled pretty well as that same excitable reaction never got old to the father, yet all the same something rang out to him that the day still had yet to end. Whether it was only his apprehension or some faint sense of an omen about, Ricky felt that this light wasn't meant to be generated just for the amusement of the child.

"Ye're not de one who needs courage now 're ya." He pointed out with a faint grin on his face, as the child continued to try and touch the light several times. There had always been an abundance of insatiable curiosity found in his eyes, yet there was always the innocently adorable smile found on his son's face that made Ricky feel better, braver than he was before as it gave him the courage he need to find hope for whatever he was to face. "No matter what ye'll always be de source o' dis light son, Priskil only knows dat yew and yer mot'er is what makes it glow so bright. S'why Oi t'ink ye believe in me always, even when ye may not understand what all is goin' on." He said aloud as the thought rolled from his head and over his tongue, the child switched his looks between his father and the generated ball of light in his hand, a playful giggle heard as the child attempted to stand on his feet for a moment.

The end result was only him falling forward on the mattress as he caught himself, his legs just not yet ready to allow him to walk alone. "Look at yew, already tryin' t' stand tall. Ye'll git dere one day son, Oi'll make sure t' be dere when ya do." He encouraged as the light dissipated when he reached underneath Martin's arms to lift the boy, he held Martin close enough to snuggle up with the boy as he eased back to relax on the mattress and interact with the child further. He wondered how soon Telion would come back from visiting West Street and that brought him to look out the window to see how much daylight was left, granted nighttime was almost right around the quarter at this point now. He knew she wouldn't be much longer, but he still felt that he needed to be elsewhere, that something needed his attention out there. He ignored it though as Martin managed to interrupt his thoughts, fingers put inside Ricky's own mouth as they curled around his bottom lip. The father gave a playful growl at the boy and then proceeded to just barely nibble on his son's fingers, in turn exciting the child as he continued to play with him for a bit longer.

[Jadlin Hayes]

Jadlin Hayes

Jad reached the Grotto and gave Serra a distracted "hello". Moving down the hall, he passed his own door, figuring Black would not have stayed there this long. He made a bit of a face as he imagined her out picking someone's pocket.

Though the moral issue bothered him somewhat, he knew, from very personal experience, that there were far worse forms of villainy than that. Given his choice, he'd be thanking the gods for being a victim of a bit of simple larceny, rather than some of the things he'd gotten caught up in. He rationalized that every person had a degree of victimizing in their respective fates, and those that fell to Black's thieving fingers would somehow be spared worse things.

It was nothing but an excuse not to bring the issue up to her, and he knew it. And today would be another such employment of that same excuse. He needed her knowledge of the town. He'd made his rounds when he'd first arrived, taking note of a thing or two, here and there. He knew there were doves and pigeons used to carry messages, but he'd somehow missed the location of that enterprise. He hoped Black knew where it was.

He got to her door and gave a coded knock, intending to enter immediately after. But the door was locked. He knocked again... and again... nothing... and nothing. He leaned right up to the door and called her name. Still nothing.

He cursed softly. Again, the thought of her stealing bothered him more for the thought that she might someday target some unforgiving brute who'd beat her to death, than the concern over the transgression itself. Now he had to go look for her.

He figured she'd go where there was a crowd. He bolted back out the front, throwing another absent minded wave to Serra, then skidded and ran back to the concierge. He asked if she's seen black leave and the young woman let him know which way she'd gone at first, but informed him that she hadn't gone out to see anything beyond that.

Jad thanked her nonetheless and was already considering what destinations Black might have in mind, given the initial direction Serra had said she'd taken. He came to the first corner and quickly judged which direction held the most destinations that would be of interest to Black. He turned down that street and came to the next corner.

This choice was pretty much a push. There were targets in several directions. But then he thought he saw her, heading for a spot that gave her access to the fringes of a typical gathering spot, with several escape routes for a thief to take advantage of. He took off in that direction, calling her name.

x

[Black Onyx]

Black had also noticed some slight changes within herself over the last couple of days and although she wasn’t too worried, it was just some sickness every now and then, which mostly happened as she ate. Her steps carried her forwards as she made her way towards The Fountain, remembering that she had made a mental note to visit and scout out a possible target to steal from. The moment that she reached the location she sopped, edging her form towards a building and leaning her back against it. The equine would then start to lift her arms, before pain stabbed through her left arm and she remembered that she couldn't cross her arms for her left arm was held inside of a makeshift sling. So, she simply slide her right hand into the pocket of her pants, a sigh falling upon her lips followed softly by a yawn that parted them. People walked and carried on with their daily chores. Some of them stopped to talk to another, or they would simply give each other a brief greeting before passing them. It was normal human behaviour really.

The young woman then moved to pull out an apple from her pants, she brown hues staring at the fruit for a moment and almost instantly, her stomach began to churn at the thought of food. Silently disgusted herself at feeling sick at the simple piece of food, she pocketed the piece of fruit and returned back to her people watching. Although, this task was disturbed as she heard someone call out her name. A frown descended upon her brow as she leaned forwards from her position by the building, her hand slipping out of her pocket once more. She then turned to view the running form of Jadlin and suddenly she felt anxiousness through their bond and her brow furrowed deeper. She angled her head to the right as she took in the man’s form for a moment before she shook her head. Why was he calling out her name in such a manner? Didn’t he know that she would prefer that her targets didn’t know her name? Another sigh would then fall upon her lips before she began to walk towards Jadlin to see what he needed from her, the afternoon had been a bust, so she would have to attempt later that night. Maybe a couple of drunks from the bar will suffice, she thought to herself as she reached Jadlin.

”My love, I do hope that this is an emergency of some kind, for I had been scanning the crowd for potential targets.” She glanced over her shoulder as she noted a couple of people glance their way, but no real interest in them was showing and she angled her head to indicate that they start walking in the opposite direction. Black was confused by this sudden appearance of her bondmate, not that she wasn’t happy to see him, for she was always happy to see him. However, of late the task of stealing had become problematic for the equine, as she had begun to lose her appetite, especially considering that even just the sight of food made her feel somewhat ill. Not only that, but the pain of her left arm still bothered her and it still pulled, throbbed and sent stabbing pain sup along her arm whenever she did steal something. It had made her actions and reactions a little slow which was concerning to the larcenist. Once they were a sufficient way away from prying eyes and ears, she stopped and faced Jadlin, a smile now falling upon her lips. ”Ok, so I assume that you need my help. What do you need me to do?”

OOCSorry if this post is a little choppy.
Word Count621

[Ricky Maze]

The nibbling came to a halt as Ricky leaned upward then, determined to try and help his son get into the habit of walking. Lhex could've by all means willed it to happen some other time, but now Ricky was going to spend time building up to that moment by guiding the child around. Confident that such a thing could hopefully be achieved though the father slid off the bed with Martin in arms, cheers of encouragement followed as he kept the child laughing and energetic. Ricky then knelt down some to allow himself to walk, awkwardly granted his knees were bent, as he held Martin at the chest area for support as he allowed the boy to stand. Already the toddler looked to struggle with keeping himself on his feet, but with the support of his father there he could still stand at least. "Go on! Go on!" Ricky prodded the boy to try, a laugh of adoration to follow as the child raised his foot for just a tick.

It took a bit of additional prodding but finally Martin started to understand what his father wanted him to do, thus as Ricky used his hands to softly nudge the boy forward Martin in turn used his legs to pull up his feet, one right after the other as he slowly started to learn the fundamentals behind walking. Each step the boy started to make in succession led the father to cheer and encourage the child more, intense pride already started to well inside Ricky as he genuinely felt happy within that moment. It got to the point where he managed to even loosen his hands bit by bit as they would ease off, and yet the child still continued to step about confidently. It'd actually started to bewilder Ricky at how quick the child seemed to pick up at the concept, yet when his hands had loosened enough and Martin nearly lost balance in his stance, the reality that he still had a while longer before he was ready to walk reminded the parent that the child hadn't the ability to support himself yet.

That of course hardly mattered to Ricky, as Martin had already made a big leap in progress today just by learning what little he did. "Good job son! Look at yew, Oi'm so proud o' yew!" He lifted Martin in the air with a few light tosses as the child screeched and laughed aloud, excitement within the child's face as Ricky brought him close for a few more snuggles. "Papa is so damn proud o' yew, ye'll be a walkin' pro in no time." He promised the child with a soft kiss planted on the side of the boys head, a bit more laughter to follow as the child tried to escape the tickles of his prickly beard. Of course the moment settled down as it led to Ricky staring outside the window once more, somehow he felt it in the back of his mind that he needed to be elsewhere at this point. Maybe he'd just felt restless or maybe he just needed some air, either way there was hardly any reason to stay home at this point. Other than waiting for the beloved to return of course, but there were always instances that called for him to head out when she wasn't around. With Martin here though that was a different story, and he wasn't going to just up and leave the toddler alone now was he.

"Tell ya what," He looked back down to the child as Martin tugged at the collar of his shirt, "Why don't we go fer a walk? Ye wanna do dat? Spend a lil' bit o' time watchin' de city?" The boy didn't look to understand what his dad was saying altogether, but he laughed all the same with an incredibly adorable grin to bear. It made Ricky laugh as he brought the child up to the mattress to rest there for a moment, "Yeah, let's go fer a walk." He said this while he gathered the essentials Martin would need and placed them in the same usual travel bag he carried around, and then in turn dressed Martin in his white shirt and blue trousers before the father threw on his own shoes and white vest over the brown shirt he wore. With the bag finally over his shoulder, Ricky then picked up the boy in both arms with playful roars made at the boy, all while the two laughed as they were finally ready to head out the door. Before they went and left though Ricky made sure to write a note and leave it on the table, so that she'd know the father and son had gone out for a walk together.

After the note had been jotted down and everything was finally set, both Ricky and his son headed out the door and through the complex, once they'd finally walked down the stairs to the first floor of the building they headed onward out through the doorway, and into the streets to see what sort of trouble they could poke into. The day was only nearly over after all, and they could certainly find something to do to ease this restlessness the father felt, before Syna would finally decide to set and her rays of light would no longer grace the city.

[Jadlin Hayes]

Jadlin Hayes

Jad could see that Black was not as overjoyed to see him as she usually was, as he hurried up to her. There was still the genuine smile, but it seemed underlain by a slightly taxed patience. It only took him a moment to figure the cause. And though he didn't approve of picking pockets, he at least appreciated her complete candor about it.

It would have bothered him far more if she displayed shame in her intent by trying to hide what activity she was planning to embark upon. But she stated quite plainly that she was scanning the crowd for targets. He could not really scold her when she freely acknowledged her plans. He took the other approach he'd started to take lately.

"Oh, lover. You know how I feel about that. But more than that, I'm afraid you're going to run into someone that'll kill you over a pouch of pipeweed. I'm making enough mizas for both of us, maybe even enough for a cottage of our own...you know...together." He knew he ought not to go any further with this line of discussion. It was best just "water" that seed, it having been planted a while ago. He thought he was getting through to her. She seemed a little more hesitant than usual to roll her eyes in response.

Whatever she may have been thinking, she diverted further discussion of it by asking him what he needed from her. The situation came bouncing back to him, his eyes popping open in recall. "Oh gods, yeah! Uhh...I need you to uh... Do you know where you...send a note...a message...messenger bird..." he smacked his forehead. "I need to send a message, by bird, to one of my bosses' associates. By carrier pigeon, I suppose, or is there dovecote in town that sends messages that way? A tower maybe. that's a pretty typical structure for such things."

He explained further, "I'm supposed to work, but nobody left me the key. And the guy I need to get it from is all the way across town. I need to let my boss know as well, but I can't go both places at the same time. Could you go send a message to "Mr. Tronus Pelthes" that 'The Millers didn't leave Jad the key to the Old Warehouse, so there's no one to unload anything there until I can get it, and that I'm on my way there now if he could send someone over with HIS key...and that I'll bring it back in the morning?' That would be a real life saver."

He realized she needed some sort of destination to give the messenger "It's the leather worker's shop on the nearest corner of West Side to the Old Quarter...'Pelthes' Pelts" A secondary aspect of his request dawned on him, and with a wry grin he added, "...And I'm not just doing this to keep you from picking pockets for a day."

x

[Black Onyx]

The moment that Jadlin explained that he didn’t like her stealing, a soft sigh settled upon her lips as she closed her brown hues. It seemed like everyone that she knew was expressing their dislike or hatred of her profession. It wasn’t like she had woken up one day and decided that she wanted to be a thief, she had become a thief out of necessity. It was tiresome to hear them express their displeasure, but it was silently humourous that the two people that had expressed their displeasure were also the two that she had pick-pocketed before they had chased her down. However, Jadlin then mentioned that he made enough for the both of them and she slowly shook her head. The equine didn’t want to have to rely upon another, for she took pride in being able to stand on her two feet. Even though sometimes she would occasionally have to go without food for a day or two. It was a fact that had never worried her, for at least it wasn’t like it had been when she was little, sitting on the docks picking at leftovers. It was something that she refused to go back to doing.

Her brown hues widened a little as he then mentioned getting a cottage to live together and she angled her head slightly to the right. It made sense that they should get a place together, however, were they ready for that? Black had never actually lived with anyone before and while there were no longer anymore secrets between the two, at least she hoped not, it would take a bit of adjusting on her part. Being able to rely upon someone, someone of whom she could talk to and share her worries with. However, she wasn’t sure that she was adjusting very well with suddenly having family. She was used to only NiNi, her adoptive father, but he had left some time ago because he was a wanted man. It was a price that most thieves paid, becoming highly wanted at some point because they annoyed the wrong person. Although, she thought it strange that he wanted her to move in now, of all times. Perhaps it was because he saw how happy that Ricky and his wife was. Did Jadlin expect to have that kind of outcome when they moved in? Black hardly thought that that would be the case, considering that she was always having some kind of downfall.

Then, just as soon as she was about to say something, her bondmate moved on to a completely different topic. One of messages and birds. She dropped her gaze then to view the stone street under their feet, her right hand lifting to rub at the back of her neck. The young equine couldn’t believe that she would have to tackle this topic twice in one season. Perhaps she should just situate the two brothers in one place and tell them both everything about herself. Both of them seemed to ask the same questions, just at different times and she realize then and there, that they were most definitely brothers. Even if they were only half brothers, they were very much a like in many ways. ”I…” She paused for a moment as she drew in a breath and looked back up at him, a crimson blush staining her cheeks. ”I can’t read, nor can I write, so I’m afraid that I cannot be of much use to you in that department.” She managed a small smile although she was a bit disappointed within herself that she couldn’t help the man that she loved. ”I’m sorry My Love, I have failed you...” With that, she turned her gaze away as her shoulders sloped downwards.

Word Count626

[Ricky Maze]

"Where t' go, where t' go?" The father wondered as he allowed his feet to do as they will, the were practically in the direction towards the heart of the city from the Old Quarter, though he wasn't sure if that was where it was he would stop. He thought about what possible places that he should go, places they should stop at or visit before they found a spot to settle down and ventilate some of this restless energy they had. Martin always had energy to spare of course until he needed a nap, but for Ricky to feel restless like now definitely proved to be unusual for him. Hence why he thought maybe it'd do to visit the grave of his father once more, and since Martin was with him it'd be the first time his son got to meet his grandfather... and then vise versa of course.

Except his footsteps didn't seem to trail off towards the direction of the memorial grounds just yet, instead he seemed to be headed straight past East and West Street and on the way to the docks. He was bound past the districts that resided between his current location and that of his would be destination, as the warm glow of Syna started to reach its end while her rays slowly started to die out. Only the peaks of the Zastoska Mountains remained highlighted with a bit of orange and green, all while the horizon of Mathew's Bay seemed painted with sherbert hues that soon started to transition into a darker shade of violet as the clouds above decorated the ocean with their peachy colored forms. It was strange how the sky changed through colors, specifically during the setting of Syna as well as her rise into the day, the first light bringing a brilliant cool light blue upon the first wake. "Well Martin, guess we're spendin' our evenin' at de shore." He told the boy with a few repetitions to follow, the child curious about the meaning as his big eyes watched his father's face curiously.

They soon arrived finally and when they did he didn't waste time in getting their spot set up, once he'd placed Martin on his bottom he then took the blanket and spread it out over the sand, the bag he brought along placed down next to it as he hurried to scoop his son into his arms once more. He'd done it just in the nick of time, for a while Martin watched his dad, but the sand always somehow took interest then. Luckily the sand was brushed out of Martin's hands as well as off his bottom, as the child didn't have the chance to eat any when the moment proved ripe with opportunity. When they were both finally relaxed and on the blanket, Ricky had his son on lying on his back as he proceeded to play and tickle the boy, his mind already sure that his son would no doubt soil his diaper about anytime now. It was easily expected and half the time both he and Telion knew when to expect it, granted that Martin took shykes at intervals most of the time there was always a sort of count to try and follow. No counts were accurate of course, but granted the child did need a change every several bells, it was always expected and therefore prepared for should the parents take their son out.

[Jadlin Hayes]

Jadlin Hayes

Jad felt a pang of embarrassment for Black. Once again, some simple thing had served to make her feel inadequate. He needed to find just the right balance of encouragement and sympathy. "Oh, don't be silly, Lover. You haven't failed me. All I need is for you to find the place where messages can be sent. You don't need to read or write anything for me. I'm perfectly willing to write it out for you. You just go there and deliver it to him."

An idea struck him. He looked around, remembering the General store where he'd first met Black. "I know. A map! They ought to have maps of the city at the store, shouldn't they?" He took just a few ticks to recall where the store was from where he and Black were standing. He turned in that direction, offering her to either accompany him or wait there. Either way, he was going to go get a map of Zeltiva.

He hurried down to Clarke's general store, wishing a good day to Mr. Clarke and asking for a map of the city. He felt better just buying a map, as opposed to asking the man for directions. It was a business after all, and the idea of asking the man to go extra trouble giving directions, and in the process, preventing the need for a sale, struck him as rather self-serving.

He did not, however, feel bad about asking for the use of the man's ink and quill. That was always ready for Mr. Clarke's own use, so it was not any trouble. He paid the 2 gold mizas for the local map, and wrote down the note he wanted Black to deliver to the man at 'Priskill's Spire', where messenger birds were kept.

He found Black and unfurled the map, looking it over to find their current location, and the location of Priskill's Spire. He handed Black the note:

Mr. Tronus Pelthes,

The Millers didn't leave me the key to the Old Warehouse, so there's no one to unload anything there until I can get it.
I don't have time to come and get yours and still get there on time.
Could you send someone over with your key? I will bring it back in the morning.

Jad

"Just give the guy at Priskill's Spire this note, and have him send it to Pelthes Pelts, okay? I need to get to the Old Warehouse." He kissed her and nodded encouragingly.

x