by P. S. Power
Tovey stepped out of the back, along with a pretty woman that wore a red dress designed to catch the eye. She was short, and looked different than he’d ever seen her. He realized who she was at least fifteen full seconds before she seemed to recognize him though, so he figured the points had to go to him on that one.
“S’t… Torrence? You look great. Who’s your friend?” She asked this with an accent that sounded a little fake to his ear, but really, if he just listened to her without remembering she was Terlee from Two Bends, she sounded like a royal. Way more than he did. He sounded a bit more like a merchant in accent, at least that’s what Rolph had told him. Then, Tor had learned to speak like he did by copying Rolph’s, which at school was all “Rolph Merchant” his disguise, “Prince Alphonse” sounded different.
Tovey looked puzzled by the addition of Collette to their group as they stood in the store for a few moments. He waited for an explanation apparently, and possibly a bit anxiously, so Tor filled them in. He could get the possible unease. Terlee was from Two Bends, not the Capital. Having an extra girlfriend around might just make her go off. Except that it was Terlee, and Tor knew his sister better than that. She might hide all evening, but she wouldn’t get openly angry.
“Collette is a friend of ours Terlee. She was originally going to go to this with the Count but they decided that wouldn’t work too well, since the situation with you and he has changed? I’ll need to be filled in on that sometime soon I think. Anyway, since she’s a friend of mine too, I’m getting her in to the party. There’s more to it than that, but that should serve for now.” To his amazement Terlee just smiled and took Collette’s hand gently.
“Nice to meet you.” She said, getting something similar back from Collette, who seemed happier and more at ease suddenly. Of course the situation could have been a lot more tense given everything, so that probably made sense. Terlee was a lot of things, but mean wasn’t one of them and apparently, rumors of her not being understanding aside she really was trying to adapt to the new situation at least as hard as Tor was. If anything she fit in better, he decided, feeling proud of his sister again. She’d gone from Two Bends to engaged to a Count in what, a month? A month and a half? Tor had been out of the village for nearly three years now and still wasn’t engaged to a Count at all.
Tovey helped him boost the chest onto the back of the carriage, moving it easily. Tor couldn’t have picked it up that high on his own, not within two feet even. He marveled a little, knowing that no matter what else happened in his life, he’d just never be that tall. No wonder people let them lead. It was just darned impressive. Before they got in the back of the carriage Tor took out a handful of amulets and started handing them out.
“Presents. One to keep your temperature stable,” Tovey pulled his out from under his shirt, so Tor took the one he’d tried to give him back with a smile. Good to know that he’d kept it all this time. “The other is just, well, here….” He put the amulet on and looked down at the little array of sigils and tapped the first one.
A soft white light grew slowly out of the air around his body, resting about two inches off of his skin. It wasn’t glaring and showed better in the back of the dark carriage than it would under bright lights, but it wasn’t meant to be useful, just interesting.
Collette looked at hers.
“Why are their seven sigils though?” She didn’t hit any of the others, being smart enough to know better. No sane adult ever touched a sigil without knowing it was safe.
“Each ones a different color of light. It’s harmless. Let’s see…Here.” He reached over to her and hit the right sigil, fourth from the left, not noticing at first that he was tapping so near her chest until after the light blue sprang up in the air around her. He suddenly felt awkward, but no one else seemed to notice. Terlee matched her own with red light after a few tries and the Count decided that green suited him best.
“If nothing else,” Tovey said as he looked at the people with him, smiling in that relaxed fashion of his. “At least we’ll be easy to see.”
Chapter five
Tor nearly just left the city in embarrassment when the gate guards tried to turn him away again at first. He didn’t have an invitation.
No one had even mentioned the idea to him before. Count Thomson had one, printed in a fine hand on sturdy paper; it was black ink on a smooth cream colored paper that he’d never seen the like of before. It even had his sister’s name on it; right there in hand inked lines. Rolph hadn’t mentioned even needing one at all! Well, at least he’d warned Collette that this might happen. She didn’t seem overly put out by it at least, just shrugging it off.
“Do I get to keep the amulets? I think that I could use them to deflect the worst of Maria’s bites tomorrow… God that sounds mercenary doesn’t it? I just-” the woman shrugged a little and touched his arm gently, leaving her hand on it as the gate guards kind of glared at them for not having the proper papers. Had the invitation just been some kind of game then? Why? Then again, they were all royals and everyone knew that they didn’t do things in a straight foreword manner if they could help it. Even Tor had grown up with stories about that.
So was this really him being snubbed? Worse he’d brought his own witnesses. Crap.
He should have just skipped it, shouldn’t he?
“Of course, heck, I’ll load you up with amulets and fields if you want them, I brought plenty. I guess I really did make someone mad at me here. I wonder what I did? Probably being too short or something silly like that. Well, anyway, Tovey, would it be all right if we borrowed the carriage to get Collette back home? I’m horribly embarrassed about all this. I was asked by Rolph and Varley to come personally, they said that it was directly from the King and Queen and I figured… well, I guess things are different than I thought? Nothing for it now.”
He forced a smile, even knowing he sounded horrible. It was just that his stomach was making an effort to sink through the bottom of his tummy that did it. Probably trying to hide, away from the shame he’d brought on them.
The Count and Tor’s sister both got out, but looked uneasy doing it. Tor made a point of giving the King’s presents to the Count for delivery, since it was right there anyway, and the little gift he’d worked up for the Queen as well. Why should their fun be ruined? He told them to go and have a good night, sounding like it was a funeral the whole time.
Poor Collette had to ride back with him in borrowed shame, instead of mixing and mingling like she’d planned. She looked so pretty too. Anyone keeping her out of a party was a moron, Tor decided, feeling lower than he’d felt in days.
Really he would have just left the Capital right then had it been just him, just rising into the air and flying off, dark or not, but he owed her at least something for having shown up with him. When they got to her house he off loaded a large amount of plates, water heaters, room temperature controls, a few more of the glowing amulets, five personal shields and flying rigs along with two luggage plates. It wasn’t enough, he knew, so he gave her four more amulets for luggage, but anything more would be getting redundant. Collette hugged him as he turned to leave.
“Don’t worry, it’s just an oversight I’m sure. Things do happen with large events like this.” She sounded a little worried though, slightly upset. Warnings or not, he’d really let her down, he knew. Tor should have seen it coming.
Why hadn’t he?
Because he was foolishly trusting, that was why.
Moron.
He knew she was probably right, but it felt like he was being snubbed on purpose. It wouldn’t have been a big deal, if he hadn’t been asked so very clearly like he had been. If no one had said anything about it, and just left him at the bakery after delivering his stuff, it would have been all right. Oh well. He walked back to Debbie’s, so that the carriage could get back to the party were it might be needed later. When he got back, not too late, since the Baronetta lived about a slow ten minute walk away, even with his luggage floating along behi
nd him on the fairly busy street, he found that Debbie hadn’t even left yet. The clock on the wall said it was only about nine-thirty. They’d made decent time in the carriage for once at least.
“You’re back already? Did you forget…” When Debbie looked at his face she cringed. “What happened?”
The explanation didn’t make very much sense to him, or to her either. After all, she’d heard the Prince and Princess ask him to come themselves, and assured him that he hadn’t misunderstood or anything. It wasn’t the wrong night or time. They’d both been very clear, and she reminded him, insistent that he come. He asked her if she’d help him undo the lacing, so that he didn’t have to try and break it in order to get out of the clothing. She locked the door and went to work.
“Tor, you do know you’re glowing, don’t you? Is that…bad? Like a combat aura? Only for Wizards?”
Laughing he explained the amulet, took his off and gave it to her. They were pretty useless over all; you could just barely read by the light, but looked pretty enough in the dark. Shrugging he unpacked most of the contents of the trunk he’d loaded with various things and left it with her, setting devices on her counter. Her look seemed scared at first, but he told her that she could sell them, or if she wanted, give them away. He made little piles out of the remaining things and told her that he’d be gone in the morning and apologized for leaving her in a lurch.
“It’s, really it’s probably nothing, an oversight like Collette said or… I don’t think I’ve done anything that bad to anyone at least, but if the King or Queen is out to get rid of me, or just doesn’t want me here, I’d better get out of their city, you know? Just in case. I’ll leave in the morning, if that’s all right? They know I’ve been working here and I don’t want to track trouble to you if there is something.”
After she left, he felt like crying, but didn’t. He’d been silly to think that any of them liked him after all. Tor was just some kid their son knew from school and while they’d been nice to him, it wasn’t reasonable to expect them to want him to be around, was it? Who was he to even imagine that was possible? Some country hick that didn’t even know all the correct social rules. He hadn’t even known that he’d need an invitation on paper.
Really Tor had never even heard of that before, so even knowing to ask was out of the question.
A light came from outside, through the windows in front. Tor went out to watch the show, looking up in the sky with hundreds of others on the street, most of who clapped or made noises like it was a fireworks display. It wasn’t.
He knew what it would do, of course, he’d built the device, but seeing the huge spinning disc of colored light shift and fade over the Capital made him feel good for a second. It was complex and interesting to look at and made for a decently good show, he thought. Except that it was made by him. After a few minutes a face appeared in it, translucent and glowing still. The face of the King. His face looked strong and regal, holding just a hint of a playful smile, what he’d seen from the King every time there hadn’t been an emergency. Then Connie’s came, looking youthful and radiant. Rolph followed, a little more solid looking than the others, a little more lifelike, because he hadn’t had to work from old memories to build that face at all, just look across the dorm room. Karina looked happy, almost joyful since he’d remembered how she’s seemed when he’d given her something or other and Varley looked about three years older than she actually was. Pretty though. As lovely as her mother at least.
It was probably too gaudy and cheap for them, he found himself thinking, almost wishing they’d just turn it off. Instead they left it running all night long, the order changing after the first time through, the main colors of the wheel shifting from deep purple and gold to blue and green, then fire colors, orange and yellow.
He’d been stupid to give it as a gift, thinking it was the equal of… anything. A basket of rolls would have been as good, better even, because at least the servants could have eaten them. Or the dogs. Did they keep dogs? Probably. They could use them to chase down runty troll peasants like him, if they got too annoying. Now everyone would see how stupid he was. With that thought, he fell asleep.
Kind of.
He woke over and over again, unable to feel comfortable no matter what position he took on the hard pallet. He’d been fine the night before. But now it just didn’t work for him and he kind of ached as he laid waiting for the dawn.
When first light came, finally, he got up knowing he probably looked listless. Tor brushed his teeth, just so they’d be clean, and collected his things up slowly, feeling horrible the whole time. He waited for Debbie to get there, standing out front, so that he wouldn’t leave with the door unlocked. Not that he thought anything bad would happen. Most of the city was asleep still and even the boss came in later than she had been, knowing that would be true. But it just felt rude and right now he didn’t want to do anything that would leave anyone else feeling slighted if he could help it. He asked directions to the nearest gate in the outer wall and she pointed and told him to go up three streets and then follow the road he found on the left until he hit the wall.
“You can’t miss it. I…” She looked down but didn’t say anything.
Right, she had to get to work and here he was leaving her without a chance to find extra help. Still, since he didn’t know what was possibly going on, not for certain, it would be better if he just left, drawing off any attacks so that only he was affected. The walk to the wall took most of the morning, but the guards at the gate didn’t try to stop him, even though they stared at the boxes training after him. Probably wondering if he was smuggling something out of the city. Once outside the gate he reset the cases to fly, using the regular floats and then decided to take off without waiting any longer.
He was hungry, but he didn’t have money with him to speak of, having left the last five golds and two silvers he had under the cash box for Debbie. He hated the idea of leaving her like this after having promised to work with her, good reason or not. Also Tor didn’t want to risk being caught. They may not hurt him, but they might embarrass him in public again. Probably just standing around, pointing and mocking him for sport or something.
It might not be fair of him to think that, but the whole thing kind of felt that way already. Like they were snubbing him, just to make a point about how much less he was than they were. Maybe that was what they were really doing? Just letting the world know how little he actually counted?
The flight was faster going back to the school, since he flew directly there and didn’t bother stopping in Galasia, where they apparently thought he was a tiny evil troll anyway. With a big nose. He landed outside his room in the courtyard, the cobblestones uneven and hard under foot. He nearly tripped on one of them, so he kicked at it a little angrily, which did nothing useful at all. Then, without considering how dangerous it might prove to be, he reactivated the flight rig and the floats on the cases, lifted up slowly and resettled them on the third floor walk way just outside his room. From there he could drag them both in without having to try and get help going up the stairs.
Having nothing else planned for the day, he just sat in his room and waited. Nothing would happen he knew, but what else could he do at all? Work?
That… actually made sense.
There was a need for excavating in Galasia, and even if they did think he was an evil troll, that still had to be done. A few kids getting the wrong idea about him didn’t mean a whole city deserved to be left in a lurch. Also, he kept putting off making that house drier for that lady he’d met at that palace diner. The one that they’d let him go to. Tor didn’t know her name, but he had directions to her house somewhere around his room.
Also, there was an idea he’d been playing around with for a while, one that probably wouldn’t sell at all, but might be kind of nice to have, if just for himself. Tiny beverage coolers and warmers that let you set the temperature of whatever you had in your cup. With a little practice he could work it into the cup itself,
so it wouldn’t even need a separate plate or anything. It was pure luxury really, but might be good for traveling, since technically you could cook or chill a one person meal in it, if it was made right.
Tor got some water, went to the restroom and started working without hesitation as soon as he settled on the bed. If nothing else he still had his work, even if no friends were left to him. After two days he had the first half of what would be needed for Galasia. He went to the dining hall for diner, ate as much as he could, and slept till morning. Then he started on the second half.
The first part was easy enough; after all, it was the same basic principle as moving water, right? Sure it took a stronger field, but no one would insist on moving tons of earth per second, so the amount moved could be smaller, about three foot square per second. He tested it by flying out to the weapons range and working in the mostly destroyed field along side of it. In less than an hour he’d built a thick berm wall along the back and side. He made the otherwise flat part tilt a little so that water would run out the back, away from the other part of the range. It wouldn’t do to flood it after all.
The second part was something totally new, and harder because of it.
The idea was simple enough; just compress the earth in a given area so much that it turned solid. The reverse of an explosive weapon basically, giving an area the instruction to move inward instead of out. But it took a lot of field strength to work a relatively small area down into something hard enough to withstand water. He worked for days and days on it, trying to make the field big enough to be useful.
Rolph came back, but didn’t bother to talk to him, because he was working the whole time, Tor figured. Might as well chat up a wall for all the good it would have done him. As soon as he actually had something worth putting forward for a grade, he went to Fines and showed him how it worked. The instructor was impressed. All of them were.
