Firebrand

Chapter 369: Veiled Warnings

Chapter 369: Veiled Warnings

Veiled Warnings

As he wiped the sweat from his brow during his second combat lesson, Martel tried to determine which kind of training he disliked the most. Doing weapon sparring without magic against mageknights was a fool's errand; Martel could not imagine what Reynard thought this would accomplish, which made him suspect that Reynard had not given this any thought to begin with. But at least the chain shirt protected against blows, leaving Martel with nothing worse than superficial bruises; as the mageknights did not use magic either, their blows with blunted weapons had considerably less bite.

In comparison, the kind of skirmishes he had done in previous months had been a lot more interesting. Whether mageknights and elemental mages fought side-by-side or against each other, Martel felt he had learned about how to fight as a group and used his magic in various ways, such as the flame wall spell. While it had sometimes felt that the exercises were stacked against them, fighting four mages against eight, they had still managed to grab a win now and then.

On the other hand, the punishment for losing those skirmishes had often been detention with Moira in the Circle of Fire. Perhaps Martel should be grateful that the current training did not involve any risk of that. The fire acolyte told himself that in an insisting manner as Alain's sword slapped against his shin, making him wince.

***

As Martel left the Lyceum, part of him regretted setting the meeting with Flora. Night Knives, the Friar and the Keeper, now these Silver Serpents – every time he rejected them, another sprung up to try and reel Martel back in. As much as he disliked Kerra, at least she had the good sense of leaving him alone.

But Flora's note had sounded important, and whether curiosity or caution drove him, Martel wanted to know what she had to share. As he entered the tavern, he let his magic sweep the room; no hint of gold larger than the occasional coin in one or two purses. Flora sat alone; Martel did not see any who looked like a mercenary, though if they were in disguise, that would be the point. Still, with nothing to alarm him, Martel approached the earthmage. Pity there was bad blood between them; he could have used her help with Sparrow.

To his surprise, Flora rose to meet him with a big smile. "Good to see you," she declared in a loud voice, even though the room was not particularly noisy. She even reached out to place a hand on his shoulder; as she did it slowly, he did not take it as a threat, though it did make him frown. Finally, she sat down again, pushing a cup of ale towards the empty seat opposite her.

"Your note made it seem important," he mumbled, confused by the complete change in her demeanour from their last conversation. He could guess at two possible reasons; either she wanted to reconcile – or she needed something from him. In which case, she was out of luck.

"Yes." Her expression grew serious, and she lowered her voice that he suddenly found it hard to hear her. "I've come to warn you."

"About what?" Even as he leaned forward a little to better hear, he stayed mindful of any movement around him.

"I've been told you had a meeting with some islanders. Shifty-looking fellows, usually with a snake as a symbol on their clothing or skin." She gave the cup of ale in front of him a little push. "I got that for you."

Martel was not thirsty. "How would you know about my meeting?"

"One of my men saw you at the tavern and recognised you. While he did not know your companion, islanders are few in Morcaster, and he could guess the rest."

"Well, what is it to you?" Martel leaned back again, crossing his arms.

"I thought you should know who you are dealing with. They may have presented themselves as a mercenary company, much like the Night Knives, but their dealings are more in the shadows. They gather information, spy on people, and have been known to extort others when it suits them."

Martel furrowed his brow. As he did not have any dealings with these islanders anymore, it did not matter to him who they were, but he wondered what Flora's angle was in all of this. "They did not seem like such. At least the one fellow I met." Truth be told, he had made Martel feel a little uneasy, but he figured this was the best way to derive more information out of the earthmage.

Flora gave an overbearing smile. "That is their pattern. They are excellent at appearing to be something else than their true nature. After all, they'd make terrible spies and rogues otherwise. I'm told you accompanied Lady Pearl to a meeting with an islander at Smallport?"

It took Martel a moment to remember. "What of it?"

"That was one of their number, pretending to be a merchant in order to fool Lady Pearl out of her coin. One of their many schemes against her. They are quite wily, though fortunately inept when it comes to applying force, making them no match against us Night Knives in an open fight. Hence the scheming."

Now the pieces began to fall into place. "They're your rivals. Or Lady Pearl's, at any rate. They're trying to ruin her, and you're afraid that I will help them do it."

"I thought there might be a risk you make that mistake, yes. Which is why I thought to warn you against them."

Martel felt a tinge of annoyance. He had already rejected them. This evening was turning out to be a waste.

Either oblivious to his mood or simply deciding to press on, Flora continued. "Lady Pearl told me of that encounter and how you knew him to be a fraud. His jewellery was all fake, which should tell you of their financial situation. Their headquarters lie across the sea. They have only a small presence in Aquila, and barely any in Morcaster. Whatever they promised you, they lack the coin to pay you."

That made Martel feel a little better about his decision; it had seemed a little foolhardy to trust these people to get him out of Morcaster without knowing anything about their network capabilities. Still, as he had no arrangement with them, Flora's warning was superfluous. "Well, you need not fret. I turned them down. I have no interest in getting entangled with them – or you. You can chase each other in the shadows for all I care." He got up.

The earthmage swiftly stood up as well, smiling. "Wonderful to hear! Take care, my friend."

Feeling weird, Martel just nodded and left. Once he was gone from the tavern, Flora's smile vanished, and she likewise strode away. Soon after, two men, both hooded, also rose from their seats. They had been sitting in opposite ends of the tavern, and although they did not even glance at each other, their departure seemed almost in rhythm. Once they were outside, one followed Flora towards the bridge district while the other watched Martel enter the Lyceum across the square.