Disclaimer: The author of this fanfiction does not, in any way, profit from the story. All creative rights to the characters belong to their original creator(s).
The Reclamation of Paralon
by Pout
Chapter 12: Of Prostitutes, Magic, and the Lord Jagroth
“Itsuki! You’re back!”
The man called Itsuki sat there crouched down like a frog, staring back at Momoshiro with an unconcerned look in his eyes. He smiled and said, “Hi, Momo. What’re you guys doing back here?”
Momo considered the question for a second then answered: “We’re hiding.”
Itsuki nodded slowly. “Why?”
“Well, some guys are chasing us.”
“Oh. Why’s that?”
“Well, they probably want to beat us and stuff.”
“Why?”
Momoshiro sighed. “Because we stole one of their prostitutes.”
“Why’d you do that?”
“Because he didn’t want to be a prostitute.”
“Why not?”
“Because! It’s not exactly a decent profession.”
“Why?”
“Social constructs and popular consensus place a taboo on-! Argh! Itsuki! What are you doing back here so soon? You’re not due back for another three days!”
The other man nodded, his floppy, brown hair bobbing along with the movement. “My client didn’t listen to me and he got himself eaten. I told him not to stare.” Dan twitched and Inui carefully adjusted his glasses.
Momo mustered up a weak smile. “Er…well, it’s good to see you.”
“We need to get going,” Inui said helpfully.
“Oh, are we going already?” Itsuki said.
“Yes, because of the people chasing us.”
“Oh. Right. Do we get to keep the prostitute?”
“I’m not a prostitute,” Dan pouted.
Itsuki looked over at the adorable young man. “Oh, he’s too young, really,” Itsuki said, shaking his head and giving Momoshiro and Inui a disapproving look.
“What? No! We’re not-! Argh! Can we just go now?!” Momo said, not in the mood to defend himself.
Just then, a voice from the street cried out: “There they are!”
“Ok, definitely time to go,” Momo said as they all bolted.
Itsuki led the way as the mob behind them called out, “After them!” and enthusiastically gave chase shooting arrows and brandishing swords.
While Momoshiro and company were running around The Block with “Sleazy” Sal’s lackeys in hot pursuit, over by the eastern outskirts of Carrimos, Fuji and Eiji were killing time as they waited for Kamio to return.
The three emissaries dispatched to seek out the leader of the rebellion had arrived at the borders of Carrimos the afternoon before. They agreed that it would be best for Kamio to go in alone and test the waters. It was unlikely that the city guard would be particularly attentive to instructions issued from the capital given Carrimos’s general propensity to run counter to national policy, but it was best to stay on the safe side. The fact that the city government was at odds with Atavis would have been a pretty good reason to send a few of the Royal Guard over to keep an eye on things. As such, Kamio set out to find his contacts and hopefully secure a meeting with the rebel leader, Kawamura, as soon as possible, after which he would return for his two companions.
Meanwhile, Fuji and Eiji settled themselves down for the wait in a dingy shack that was once an old low-sider safe house. Kamio had not returned the night before, but they had agreed on a two day limit, after which Eiji and Fuji would venture into the city to see what had become of him. To amuse themselves until then, Eiji recruited Fuji to teach him about magic.
Magic existed freely and abundantly among the people. It was present in most every child with very few exceptions. It was stronger in some, weaker in others, but almost everyone had some potential with the resource. Those who passed through the exams at Iso were undoubtedly the strongest casters in the country; Fuji in particular had passed with exceptionally high scores. The rest of the populace, with moderate levels of magic like Eiji, received little formal training.
Fuji began his lesson by introducing the differences between mage types.
“There are two broad categories of mages: war mages and green mages. There are, in turn, two types of war mages: power war mages and stealth war mages. Power mages deal specifically with attack and defense.”
“Let me guess: you’re a power war mage,” Eiji said, expecting nothing less.
Fuji smiled. “That’s right.”
Eiji remembered the blast that shook the sewer tunnels back in Geddervont. At the time he had been too busy running for his life so he hadn’t properly analyzed the incident. Now that he was free to reflect, he took the time to fully appreciate the immense power the man in front of him possessed.
“Power mages deal with manifest power,” Fuji said, continuing his lesson. “Stealth mages deal with the covert, subterfuge and stratagem.”
“What, like spying and stuff?”
“Exactly.”
“So can they really turn themselves invisible? I heard about some mage who turned a whole fortress invisible! Can they really do that?” Eiji asked excitedly.
Fuji cringed a bit and said, almost haughtily, “It wasn’t entirely translucent.”
“Wow! No way! They can actually do that?!”
Fuji hummed ambiguously and ignored the question. “As for green mages, there are three sub-categories: trade, academic, and comprehensive mages. Trade mages can specialize in any number of fields, for example, agriculture, carpentry, glassworks, the list continues.”
“Yeah, I remember a friend of mine back in Haberia who had a cousin or something that was planning on becoming a blacksmith mage. He was going to go join the guild, I think.”
“There are a number of trade mage guilds in different parts of the kingdom. Mage guilds specialize in the practical application of magic. Academic mages, on the other hand, specialize in certain aspects of magic. They can choose to focus on an element, or just on sign casting, or potions, or spells, etcetera. For example, I have a friend studying at Iso who specializes in scrying. Noble mages are usually academic mages.”
“That makes sense. Doesn’t sound like they actually do any work,” Eiji said, his nose up in the air.
Fuji chuckled and decided against arguing the point. “Lastly we have the comprehensive mage type. Comprehensive mages are supposed to be able to do a little bit of everything but they usually also have some area of expertise.”
“Is that what the First Mage is? A comprehensive mage?” Eiji asked.
Fuji nodded. “Yes. The Royal Court’s head mage has to be able to do everything.”
“So, you’re good with magic. Why didn’t you take the comprehensive mage test and try to become the First Mage?”
“Hm. Well, there are a lot of other talented mages out there, and also, the exam to become a comprehensive mage is extensive and long. It takes three days to administer.”
These were irrelevant excuses and Eiji raised a brow expectantly.
“It’s boring,” Fuji confessed. “You have to learn about primitive sign casting and dirt composition indicator spells. It’s more fun to cast attack magic.”
“Thrill junkie.”
Fuji smiled and didn’t bother denying it.
Eiji yawned and scratched his chin. “Anyway, are you gonna teach me how to blow things up now?”
Fuji chuckled. Having spent four days on the road with the energetic redhead had taught him that Eiji absolutely detested being bored. “All right. Here, I’ll teach you a fun trick.” The war mage reached for his staff and smiled because Eiji was excited and Fuji hated to disappoint.
The night was settling into the corners of the spacious room. Thick, lush carpet, colored evenly with a deep blue dye imported from Krorikos, flowed from wall to wall. Drapes of the finest heavy velvet, impenetrable by any disobedient morning rays, were strung over a series of tall windows. Majestic was the scenery. The bed, large enough for a small family to sleep in, was undoubtedly a world of perfectly textured comfort. The furnishings were anything but modest, all expertly crafted and harmonizing to compliment the décor flawlessly. The room was a sea of affluence and eminence.
Only a few minutes ago, a servant boy had come in to start the fire in the hearth and pull the velvet curtains. It would not be long before the master of the castle would be retiring to his chambers.
As expected, the double doors were suddenly pushed open and a pair of expensive, black flat-boots padded across the carpet before stopping abruptly as the newcomer realized he was not alone. There was a small ‘hmph’ before the footsteps continued their trek.
From his seat in the corner, veiled in protective shadow, Tezuka Kunimitsu, a former captain of the Royal Guard, now fugitive of the law and traitor to the crown, sat quietly with his sword lying flat across his knees watching as the shiny boots came closer before stopping in front of him. He rose to his feet slowly and bowed stiffly. “Atobe.”
The Lord Jagroth smirked haughtily. “What a surprise. I spend a hard day at work being the terribly busy Lord of Jagroth that I am, only to come back and find a mysterious man waiting for me in my bedchambers. Honestly, Tezuka. What would you have done if I had brought another man back with me for the night?”
The swordsman denied him a reply as they took their seats. The air changed and both men prepared to talk business.
Lord Atobe crossed his legs and frowned. “You have a bounty on your head. You’ve been accused of treason. What’s this all about?” he asked directly. “Does it have to do with the prince’s death?”
“He’s not dead,” Tezuka replied.
Atobe made a vague motion with his hands. “I figured as much. The funeral was over before word even reached us. Insulting, really.”
Tezuka brought out the letter of substantiation which Atobe read through but took no pains to validate.
The lord’s brows came together as he considered the request for support. “Is he serious?” Atobe questioned. “Is he insane? This is ridiculous.”
“The Regent must be removed,” Tezuka stated.
“You’re talking about a revolution against the crown, Tezuka. I am an aristocratic lord of the House of Atobe. I will not be called a traitor.”
The implied insult stung, but Tezuka calmly responded, “The crown does not belong to the Regent. Oishi Syuichirou is Paralon’s king.”
“Not according to the law he isn’t.”
“The Regent doesn’t deserve to seat himself on the throne. That much should be self-evident.”
“I’m not denying that he’s far from the benevolent ruler we all hope he would be, but the north accepts him all too willingly. To reclaim the kingdom means civil war, north against south. Seventy percent of the population is situated in the north, not to mention the fact that the military and the Royal Guard divisions are all under royal command. You’re a top graduate of Ferriway, Tezuka. You, above all, should be able to discern how positively ludicrous it is to go against the Regent right now. It’s suicide.”
“It’s not impossible.”
“It’s pretty much impossible.”
“But not entirely impossible. If Jagroth marches under the flag of the shifting moon, others will fall in line. Mobilization is contingent on Jagroth. The smaller provinces will follow the lead of the Great Estates. The Lord Ellestor has already pledged to Oishi.”
Atobe made a rude noise, “Of course Shishido would jump into some stupid venture without thinking things through first. That fool.”
“Lord Shishido wants our true king back in the halls of Paralon and he is willing to risk everything for that justice.”
Atobe scowled and shook his head. “It’s not a risk Jagroth can take. Unlike Shishido, I do not count the welfare of my people so lightly.”
“The Regent-”
“Enough. It’s too dangerous, and, simply put: it’s not worth it. The whole idea is absurd.” With that, the debate was effectively put on hold. “Now, have you had dinner? I’ll ring for something. What would you like?”
Tezuka sighed inwardly. Atobe was just as stubborn and self-righteous as he remembered him to be. This was certainly going to be one of his more difficult missions.
If you would like to provide feedback on this story, please feel free to e-mail me at: poutonly@gmail.com.