Benjamin Ashwood (32 page)

“What
are these called?” he asked around a mouthful of the fruit.

“Oranges,”
replied Meghan.

He
looked at the bright orange skin.  “Ok.”  He looked at Meghan to see if she was
teasing him but she looked back with no trace of the expected mirth.  He
frowned down at the fruit, swallowed then continued the conversation, “tell me
about your training, or at least what you can.  What are you spending all of
that time doing?”

“It’s
a lot on theory so far,” answered Meghan.  “The theory of how different forces
in the world act.  Physical, social, political…”

“There
is a lot of political theory.  A lot,” affirmed Amelie with a nod.

Meghan
grinned.  “Amelie doesn’t always agree with what our teachers have to say. 
That’s been part of the struggle and why we haven’t had as much free time as
planned.  Every time she disagrees with Mistress Eldred, we get another reading
assignment or essay to complete.  At first, there were a lot of disagreements.”

“You’ve
started coming around to her point of view?” Ben asked Amelie.

“Let’s
just say I’ve seen the futility of debate.  The Sanctuary has some very strong
opinions on certain subjects and one way or the other, they expect you to fall
in line.  It’s better if I just go along with it, for now.”

“I
for one am delighted,” chirped Meghan.  “Every extra reading assignment that
Amelie got, I got too.  It’s part of the Sanctuary’s teaching method.  Don’t
get me wrong, Lord Velson’s musings on the benefits of the categorical denial
of rights to the peasant class and the tradeoff with the effort to enforce
breeding standards in that class is fascinating.  But after a while, a girl is
ready for a break.”

“Wait,”
said a confused Ben, “the categorical denial of rights?  What does that mean?”

“Oh,
don’t worry about that,” answered Meghan.  “They have us read opposing viewpoints
then argue the merits.  Not every position can be the most sensible one.”

“It’s
really quite droll,” said Amelie.  “The Sanctuary feels it’s important for
Initiates to understand the political climate among other things before
continuing their studies in the arts.  There’s a certain responsibility that goes
along with becoming a Mage.  And on that subject at least, I agree whole
heartedly.”

“Yes,”
concurred Meghan, “it wouldn’t do having people running around slinging
lightning bolts with no understanding of the consequences.”

Ben’s
feet kicked up little puffs of dust as he circled around the stone rimmed
fountain.  His sword was held steady in front of his face and his breathing was
even.  Shirtless in the hot, still summer air, he could feel beads of sweat
work their way slowly down his back.  The heat was stifling and seemed to have
sucked the energy out of the city.  The normal sounds of life that would have
floated their way to this empty courtyard were absent.  The only sound was the
low scuff of bare feet on dusty stone.

Outwardly,
he appeared solely focused on his movement and the other man across the dry
fountain from him.  But in his head, he was constantly calculating and
recalculating odds.  What were his chances if he darted to the right, how about
if he went left?  Minutes before, he’d tried stepping back towards the narrow
alleyway that was the only entrance to the courtyard to give himself an
advantage, but his opponent grinned and moved towards a tight corner and
signaled he was willing to wait.

In
a snap, his decision was made.  He scanned with the bottom of his eye the rim
of the fountain.  He was looking for a flat spot in the rough mortar and would
step there then launch himself straight over the fountain.  He hoped to
surprise his opponent and gain precious time before he could react.  So far,
they’d been dancing around the edges of the fountain with minimal engagement.

Just
as Ben tensed to make his move over the fountain, Rhys shouted, “come on!  I’m
sweating to death out here just to see you two walk in circles.  Forget the wager;
the first round is on me if we leave right now.”

Saala
dropped out of his fighting stance and smirked.  “If you’re satisfied Master
Ashwood, I am as well.”

“Sure,”
replied Ben.  “If Rhys is buying then we both win.” 

To
make things interesting and get motivated in the oppressive sticky heat of late
summer, they’d started wagering that Saala would by a round for every time Ben
landed a strike.  If Ben couldn’t land one, he’d buy all of Saala’s ale that
evening.  About half of the time recently, Saala ended up buying a round or
two.  It’d been a week since Ben had been unable to score at least one strike
on him.  One strike during the course of one or two bells practice didn’t seem
like much, but it was a big improvement from what he could do a few short
months before.

“Finally,”
grunted Rhys.  “I don’t think I’ve ever been more bored by a sword fight.  It’s
too hot for this strategic nonsense.  You stick them with the pointy end.  What
else do you want to know?”

“Some
fighting is speed and flash.  Some is strategy,” voiced Saala.  “Knowing when
to attack is just as important as how to attack.  Although, I’m sure Ben and I
both would benefit from your extensive experience.  Maybe tomorrow you want to
participate instead of just watching and complaining?”

“Yeah,”
said Ben.  “Why don’t you join us?  For a man who makes a living with his blades,
shouldn’t you practice some?”

Rhys
grunted again, “I only start it when I mean to stop it.  You two hope to gain
an edge by practice.  I keep my edge because there is no holding back. 
Besides, I’ve done my share of practice over the years.  I’ve been doing this
for a very, very long time.”

“How
long could you have been doing this?” challenged Ben.  “You aren’t much more
than 10 or 15 years older than me.”

“Longer
than you would think possible,” retorted Rhys before sharing a long, direct
look with Saala.

“Interesting,”
said the Blademaster.

Ben
felt like he’d missed part of the conversation.  He was interrupted from
further questions though when they got to the entrance of the Flying Swan Inn
and were nearly trampled by two massive, grim faced and block shaped men who
pushed their way out the door.

An
angry looking Mathias was standing near the entry when they got in.  “Who were
those men?” inquired Ben.  It was clear Mathias been upset by them.

“Trouble. 
More for you than me though.”

“Trouble
for me?  What do you mean?” asked Ben.

“Let’s
sit down.”  Mathias motioned to an empty table near the back of the room away
from the afternoon crowd.  “Claudia, a pitcher of Ben’s lager please.”

Saala
and Rhys had both gone into alert mode when their friend Mathias mentioned
trouble, but the threat had obviously passed for now.

“Those
were Gulli’s men,” explained Mathias when they sat down.

“Gulli?”
asked Ben.  He looked to Saala and Rhys but Saala was as confused looking as he
was.  Rhys though looked concerned, unusual for him.

“I
suppose it’s really Lord Gulli,” continued Mathias, “although he doesn’t act
like any Lord I’ve heard of.  He runs a lot of businesses in The City. 
Everything from gambling dens and brothels to a team of masons and a linen
factory.  Most importantly for you though, he has the largest brewery in The
City and supplies ale to over half the taverns on this island.  You must be
getting a lot of interest in your brew for his boys to start making house
calls.”

“Business
has been good,” replied Ben cautiously.  “We sell to you and a few other
taverns now but it’s not like we’re any threat to an operation like that.  I’m
only doing about 40 kegs a week.”

“You’re
selling to more places,” broke in Rhys.  “I thought you were going to keep it
small?”

Ben
frowned, “Renfro really pushed to expand.  He’s been so unhappy here that I
thought it’d give him something to keep occupied.”

“Well,
it must have been enough,” added Mathias.  “Gulli’s goons were asking about you
and whether I’d consider switching to another supplier – that being Gulli of
course.  Don’t worry about me, I’ve got enough friends that I’m not intimidated
by his thugs.  But some of the other tavern owners might be.  More importantly,
you better watch your back.  I’ve heard stories about Gulli before and he plays
dirty.  Competitors have had their stores trashed and there are rumors people
have turned up badly injured or missing.  He’s tight somehow with senior
members of the Sanctuary, so even though there are a lot of rumors, the City
Watch hasn’t stepped in.  He thinks he’s outside of the law and he’s very, very
dangerous.”

“We
can be dangerous too,” muttered Rhys darkly.

The
next Newday, Ben sat slumped in a corner of the Flying Swan Inn going over his
ledgers.  In addition to being his biggest customer, Mathias had become one of Ben’s
best friends in The City.  The man was an excellent listener and appreciated
complexities and qualities in ale that was beyond even Ben.  He offered Ben a
spot at a table whenever he wanted and the serving girls had learned to leave
him alone when he was working.

The
Flying Swan Inn was a well-run establishment that benefited from it’s
proprietor’s sole focus on running the place.  The common room was constantly
in a state of being cleaned and Mathias spent extra for comfortable tables and
chairs.  He lined the walls with memorabilia from other people’s travels and
added other little touches that created a welcoming ambiance.  It was a far
step above the Buckhorn Tavern in Farview in terms of quality, but it held the
same feel of home for Ben so he was happy to do work there instead of in the
dimly lit cellar he did his brewing.

Today,
he was having trouble focusing on getting the ledgers done and it wasn’t long
before Mathias stopped by his table to ask what was wrong.

“Visitation
day is cancelled again, I heard it from a meat pie seller down the street,”
grumbled Ben.

Mathias,
who was familiar with Ben’s relationship with Amelie and Meghan asked, “what,
the girls acting up in class again?  Hold on, you said a meat pie man told
you.  So it’s cancelled for everyone?”

“Yes,
that’s what I heard.  I was still going to walk over this afternoon during my
normal time but it’s probably a wasted effort.  Supposedly some important
visitors showed up in the night and they don’t want any strangers on campus.”

Mathias
surveyed the room before pulling up a chair at Ben’s table.  “This is just
rumor, but there is word that representatives from the Coalition are here.  I
heard it from a man I used to work with.  Someone I trust.  This kind of thing
usually is all over town though and I haven’t heard a peep from anyone else. 
I’m not sure what to believe, but it would explain why the Sanctuary doesn’t
want any outsiders behind those walls.”

Ben
frowned.  “The Coalition?  But the Sanctuary is aligned with the Alliance.  I
was there with Lady Towaal at Whitehall.  That doesn’t make any sense.”

Mathias
rapped one scar crossed hairy knuckle on the table and replied, “what the
Sanctuary says they do and what they do aren’t the same thing.  Take anything
they show to the world with a grain of salt.  Lady Towaal was at the Conclave
but I heard she didn’t sign the agreement, right?  I don’t claim to know the
mind of The Veil, but this wouldn’t be the first time she played both sides. 
Like I said, I’d expect that news to be everywhere and it isn’t.  So that means
it’s not true at all or it’s very true and it’s serious.”

“What
would the Coalition want with the Sanctuary anyway?” wondered Ben.  “I heard
the Mages never participate in war.  That’s why Lady Towaal didn’t sign the
agreement.”

“You’re
right, they don’t participate in war.  Too great a risk to their pompous selves
I guess.  But there’s still a lot a Mage can do without fighting.  Healing,
telling the weather, farseeing and so on.  Could be gold too.  Running a war costs
a lot of money and the Sanctuary has more of it than anyone.  Borrow some money
now and pay it off afterwards with concessions the Sanctuary wants.  One thing
about The Veil, she plays the long game.”

Just
then, Ben heard a familiar sound and looked up to see Amelie and Meghan
speaking with one of the serving girls and looking his way.

“Ben!”
shouted Amelie and she flew across the room to wrap him in a tight embrace. 
Meghan followed close behind.

“Meghan,
Amelie, what are you doing here!”

Both
girls began to excitedly talk at once before Meghan deferred and Amelie took
the lead, “they let us out for a free day!  We’re not due back until two bells
after nightfall!  Mistress Eldred came to the dormitory last night and told us
we’d progressed so well that we could leave the grounds.  We found Rhys’
apartment this morning and he said you’d probably be here so we came to find
you.”  She gave a long pause before finishing, “and here we are.  Are you
busy?  Can you show us around?  I don’t want to interrupt your business
meeting.”

“Oh
no,” Ben turned to Mathias, “this is my first customer and friend, Mathias.  He
runs this place.  Of course I’ll show you around.  Wow, I’m just surprised. 
Giving an extra free day doesn’t sound like the Sanctuary I know.”

“There
was some talk of important visitors on campus so many of the classes were
cancelled.  I think we just got lucky,” said Meghan.

“Lady
Amelie,” said Mathias with a deep bow.

“Yes,”
blushed Amelie, “but I prefer not to talk about that here.  Right now I’m just
an Initiate at the Sanctuary like all of the others.”

“Of
course, you can trust me and that’s the last I’ll say of it.  I was just
surprised to hear you were studying at the Sanctuary.  I figured Lord Gregor
would want you home with all of this Alliance and Coalition business starting
up.  I can’t imagine he, or anyone else, would want you accidentally running
into members of the Coalition.”  Mathias looked to Ben and tilted his head
slightly.

“Oh,
I don’t think there’s any chance of that.  Maybe I shouldn’t say this to a
stranger, but if you’re a friend of Ben’s… I was at Whitehall in the Conclave
when the Alliance pact was signed – I was one of the signatories.  Lady Towaal
was there as an observer from the Sanctuary.  I can’t imagine anyone from the
Coalition would come near here.”

Ben
looked back at Mathias and quickly decided to keep silent about the rumors he’d
shared.  Amelie was a long way from home and none of them were close to the
halls of power in this place.  If this Mistress Eldred had sent Amelie away for
the day, maybe it was for the best.

“Well,
in that case, let’s go see The City!” Ben exclaimed with excitement that
managed to sound only slightly forced.

During
the last few months, Ben spent much of his time working on his business in the
cellar brewing then ducking in and out of taverns to make sales calls.  In his
free time, he’d been with Saala and Rhys practicing the sword or the Ohms. 
Renfro spent a great deal more time exploring The City but Ben didn’t feel like
tracking him down for this.

“What
do you want to see first?  The sculpture gardens and the bone museum are the
most famous.  They say the theatres are the best in Alcott but it’s a little
early in the day for that.  There’s also the pleasure pier or the tea houses on
the east side.  I haven’t been there much but I’m told it’s nice if you like
tea.  There are musicians in a few of the busier markets but if I’m honest, I
have no ear for music and I can’t tell you if they are any good.  If you’re
feeling adventurous, we could go up in one of the public towers and cross some
of the sky bridges.”