“I am still a fae. A real fae.” He grinned. “Which means I get critical intel on the royal bloodlines. Mostly deaths, births, and appointments. Jezz will see the same info on her master system’s screen as well. The funeral already took place three days ago.”
Shit. I feel bad for Gavori. First her boyfriend gets dragon-napped and now her brother is dead?
“All we must do is slide our way into the court and steal a few grams for the spell.”
I squinted. “Do you have a sensitive bone in your body?”
“Why yes! I am very tender with the ladies!”
I face-palmed.
“We will disguise ourselves as grief counselors, our angle to get in.”
“God, being around you is making me feel less heroic every passing minute…”
“It’s for a good cause, hero, don’t be dramatic!” He snickered. “Ready to depart?”
I sighed. “Yeah. Let’s get this over with.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
The Exhavier district. Rufian mentioned that the names of Mavriel countries matched that of the baron families, which struck me as odd. Which came first, the families or the countries? According to him, the names did, where families of the court were specially chosen by the council. They preferred the strongest of fae to reside in their crafted courts to become sub-leaders of Mavriel, and were seen with high regard to every fae, no matter their residency.
It was a good thing Rufian gave me a crash course on the families, because I’d look stupid walking into their world without knowing a thing about their leaders.
But damn, Jezz and Rufian were right. Fae loved to do the horizontal dance.
As Rufian spelled out the families, I couldn’t keep track of the bazillion kids in each household. The kids to those kids, and their kids, and so on and so forth. Great grandmothers and fathers, cousins first, second and third, etc, etc, etc. The families were huge, and they all lived in the same court.
As for the district itself, it was just as colorful and vibrant as Ether, if not more.
While the architecture was more modernized, the aura was the same. Magic shops at every street corner, freshly cooked food at every vendor, and musicians playing their stringy and flutey instruments for passersby. The district was a hub for all things magical; from enchanted artifacts to mystical potions, everything was available. The shopkeepers, all dressed in elaborate robes and cloaks, were more than happy to offer advice to their customers as they stood before their storefronts, while advertising their plethora of pricey products.
The air was thick with the scent of herbs, spices, and cultural dishes, and the buildings were adorned with vibrant murals and runes. As I wandered through the district taking in all of the sights and smells, I felt both in and out of place at the same time. It was strange, but in a good way. This was a place where there were no rules to reality, where the impossible became possible with just a flick of the wrist or the utterance of a spell. I expected Mavriel to be intimidating, but I was glad I was wrong.
“Fae sure do hide war well, don’t they?” Rufian commented. “Just like Ether, you wouldn’t have guessed we were struggling as a nation. You’ve been to Guedmar before haven’t you?”
“Oh yeah. It was nothing like this. I remember seeing war towers in the streets, weapon vendors, slaves, victims…”
“Don’t let appearances fool you. We are the second strongest nation out there.”
“I could see why,” I said, eyeing the street we just passed as we were walking. The Institution for Advanced Alchemy. The campus was as big as the god damn White House…
Among the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, Rufian mentioned getting our disguises. The clothes we were wearing were inappropriate for the titles we needed to secure the next ingredient. I noticed there weren’t many clothing stores around, but there was the next best thing, a spell.
“Minor incantations, charms, scrolls, and enchantments are allowed in Mavriel,” Rufian said. “They do not produce curses. The High Order is on high alert, making sure their land isn’t plagued with the adverse effect of powerful magic.”
“That’s about the first good thing you had to say about them since we met.” I looked over to my right and saw something I never thought of seeing in the land of the fae. A cyber gear shop…
“Oh, that,” Rufian commented, noticing I was gawking over the street in disbelief. “Many fae believe they could emulate human gears.”
I snapped my head back at him. “Have they!?”
“No. Far from it.”
I took a sigh of relief.
“That within itself is a testament to how power hungry the fae are. But you’ve seen nothing yet. The fae have stolen the technology of Senterra. You should see Elridge. They have robots cooking their meals, raising our cattle, and nursing our babies.”
“A veil into the future. I’m pretty sure the rest of them would follow suit.”
“We are becoming too advanced for our own good. I’m glad to have been raised in a world that appreciated arcane academia over magitek.”
Rufian led the way to a quaint little tea shop with a sign that read “The Mystic's Brew”. The shop was small, but it had a cozy and inviting feel to it. The smell of magic and fae dust wafted through the air, and the sound of soft humming could be heard emanating from within.
As I followed Rufian into the shop, we were greeted by a warm smile from the old lady behind the counter. She reminded me of Elle but much much older, maybe even older than Antatha. Unlike most fae, her ears were short, the tips of them a bright purple like the strips of hair on her gray crown. She wore bangles and heavy colorful layers, making her seem stouter than she actually was. “Welcome to The Mystic's Brew, dearies”, she said with a toothless smile as she handed us both menus. “What can I get for you handsome fellows?”
I looked at the menu, my attention gravitating on a potion that instantly made me squint. Mystica Animalia Rodentia, a potion that turns you into a beaver.
But…why?
“Ah, so many choices,” Rufian complimented. “But we were looking for an elixir that could change our attire.”
“Oh, we sold out of those. That young lady right there took my last bottle,” she said, pointing at the raven-haired girl who was walking out the door. She looked like a real goth when she turned her head over her shoulder and stoically looked at the both of us with those black eyes. The eyeliner around them made her look deadly, warning us both to piss off.
But of course, Rufian wouldn’t heed her warning…
“Be right back!” he said, dashing over to her as she walked out the door.
