Kings Game

Chapter 7 - Karyn (2)

The two walked side by side, heading back towards the Crucible.

"Did she hate you?" asked Karyn.

"No, why?"

"Most whores hate getting pregnant, and dislike bearing the children of their customers."

"My mother had me intentionally," said Roran.

"That's what all mothers say."

"My mother wouldn't lie." Roran's voice was devoid of heat or frustration. Where others would get upset at the accusation of being an unwanted child, Roran was calm and secure. "I believe my mother when she said that she chose the man to create me carefully, and conceived me with full knowledge of what she was doing. My mother was thoughtful and wise, if she hadn't wanted to become pregnant, she wouldn't have."

"And yet she was still a whore."

Roran smiled at Karyn. "Yup, just like you."

Karyn turned away, her cheeks flushed.

"Where is she now? Waiting for you to return to the dungeons?"

"No, she died a long time ago. She fell ill and no one in our town knew how to cure her. She died at home, her hand in mine, smiling at me."

Roran's face twisted into a mask of bittersweet longing. He missed his mother and mourned her death, but she had been perfect even at the end. Always loving and doting and encouraging. Urging her son to become a kind person, someone that helped others. Not someone that murdered people in an arena for the amusement of others.

"Did I lose you?" asked Karyn, poking Roran in the shoulder.

"Yeah."

"Where did you go?"

"Back to the Crucible. I uh...I killed a man yesterday."

"First time?"

Roran nodded.

"You'll get used to it. Either that or you'll die."

"I don't like killing people. I don't think my mother would be proud of the person I'm becoming."

"I think she would rather have you be a killer than a corpse," said Karyn. "Either way, you'll get used to it. People like you always do."

"People like me?"

"The desperate gladiators that manage to survive a couple rounds in the arena. You get used to killing. Then you either become skilled and survive, or you become careless and you die. Or your conscience drags you down and you let yourself get killed. I'd recommend the first option. It's better to be a bad person and survive than it is to be a good person and die. At least the living can still repent and beg forgiveness. That's awfully hard to do when you have a blade sticking out of your throat."

"Do you know a lot of gladiators?"

"A handful," said Karyn. "My brother was one. He died."

"I'm sorry for your loss," said Roran.

Karyn shrugged.

"How long have you lived in the city?" asked Roran.

"Most of my life. My family came here when I was young. My mother was an indentured servant and my brother enrolled in the arena. I was too young to do much. I wasn't even me back then. After my mom died, and my brother abandoned me, I grew up enough to buy some pretty stuff and become a whore. I've been doing that ever since."

"You never wanted to leave the city?"

Karyn looked at Roran, confused. "I'm a whore, how would I make money if I left the city. Who would I sleep with on the road? I'm not the type of concubine to get swept away by a merchant prince or traveling lordling."

"My mother traveled. She said she had bodyguards that traveled with her, old mercenaries that were heading in the same direction. She saw the sun rise on one coast, and set on another, and everything in between. She traveled until her wanderlust was sated and she settled down to make a home and a family."

"Is that how she learned medicine?" asked Karyn.

Roran nodded. "And lots of other things. She knew herbology, astronomy, swordplay, archery, forestry, and even a little about animal husbandry. My mom used to say that she was hungry for life and all that it offered, and she liked sharing it with others. She taught me everything I know."

"I'm jealous," said Karyn. "I wish I could travel and learn everything there is to know."

"She didn't know everything," said Roran, partially quoting his mother, "she only knew what she knew."

Karyn laughed. "That's stupid, of course we know what we know."

Roran smiled. Karyn had a nice laugh, soft and rich and musical.

"I would like to travel," said Karyn, "but I don't have any money."

"Neither did my mom. She earned it on the road."

"I wouldn't know where to go."

"My mother said she went where her heart took her, following the rising sun and going from there."

"I wouldn't," Karyn began, "I wouldn't...I..." she trailed off, chewing her lip. "I wouldn't be safe on my own," she said finally.

"Travel with a mercenary," said Roran, "like my mother."

"And where would I find one. Or are you offering your services?" Karyn glanced at him coyly, her eyes half hidden behind their lids and her lips tugging upwards at the corner.

Roran flushed and looked away. "I can't, I'm helping a champion with something. Maybe once that's done. I would like to travel again."

"Oh, and who has their claws into you?" asked Karyn, eager for the gossip and the topic change.

"Kell."

"The living storm? Oh dear, you are in trouble. Just as well, you probably wouldn't make a very good body guard."

Roran rolled his eyes. "And you wouldn't know how to travel for more than two days and two nights without someone to babysit you."

"I guess I'll just have to wait until Kell is done with you."

"Yeah," said Roran, sobering up, "Or until I die."

"The living storm is one of the better champions, though she's a little too chaotic for my taste. Her companion Nul is much more my speed."

"You know Nul?" asked Roran, surprised. He had assumed that Nul would stay out of the way and off the stage as much as possible. They didn't seem like the type to garner attention.

"Only that they do Kell's focus markings and that they have some incredibly complicated ones of their own. They're known for using compound markings to create some powerful feedback loops with explosive effects!"

Roran raised an eyebrow and grinned at Karyn. She bit her lip and looked away.

"I sometimes watch the arena fights when I'm not working," she said. "It passes the time and I often end up working with the champions."

"You share a bed with Nul?" asked Roran, his jaw dropping.

"What, no!" Karyn laughed, "no I don't think Nul is the type of person to associate with whores. I have slept with Kell a handful of times though."