The walls of the corridor are made from a stone Krile has never seen before, and the torches attached to it at regular intervals are barely enough to illuminate the whole length. The ceiling also feels quite low compared to what he's used to and the corridor is on the narrow side. Following the dark elf in front of him proves to be a struggle with others trying to pass in the other way, forcing him to move to his sides because of his wide shoulders and his armour, he then has to catch up to the elf, who has obviously not waited for him.
Krile- So uh... where are you taking me ?
Dark elf- To see the boss. We gotta set you up prop'ly.
Krile- Huh. Sorry I didn't catch your name ?
The dark elf suddenly stops walking, turns around, smiles, and offers to shake his hand.
Dark elf- I'm Leklin !
Krile, surprised- Uhh Krile ! *shakes his hand*
Leklin- Nice to meet ya, Krile !
He starts walking again, as fast as he was going before and Krile struggles to keep up.
Leklin- So, where are you from, Krile ?
Krile, out of breath- Well, I mean... Azudour of course, where else.. but.. Hey why are you walking so fast ?
Leklin, talking fast- I like walkin'. When I can't sleep I walk. You'll never find someone who knows this Colosseum's layout better than me - well, except for the boss. I've walked these halls more than my birth-forest. Been here for over ten years I have ! I also walk a lot. I really like walkin'. It gets the blood pumpin' !
Krile, under his breath- You also like "talkin' ".
Leklin, turns to Krile- Oh before you see her, she may be small but don' be fooled she's-
A low pitched feminine voice from behind him- Yes ?
Leklin, startled, barely turns around- N-nothing boss. Here's the new guy. I-I have toilets to scrub, gotta go !
Krile- Huh ?
Leklin almost runs off back from where they came and in his stead, Krile sees a small human, not even 2 steps tall, with white-gold hair held up tight, wrinkles from years of frowning, and rust-coloured eyes that seem to pierce into your soul. Krile is frozen in place for a second.
Penelope, cold- Hello I'm Penelope. So. An Etrek.
She looks Krile up and down, paying close attention to the patches of bark that pop out of his armour.
Krile- Y-yeah I heard that was a pretty rare sight around here ...
Penelope- Not just here. Your species is ... small in numbers being an understatement. Can I assume you know about the EPL ?
Krile- the wat
Penelope sighs and turns around to start walking. She glances at Krile to indicate to him to follow her, but he's staring at the dove-like wings on her back, poking out of the jacket she's wearing.
Krile, whispering- They're... real...?
Penelope, now walking- The Etrek Protection Law. It is a uniformly agreed-upon law in effect in all 6 territories. Well, all 5 main ones, I don't know if the Etreks themselves have it since you're not even aware of its existence.
Krile, lost in his thoughts, just coming back to- Ehh ? *jogs to catch up*
Penelope- It states that Etreks shall not be executed under any local or territorial law, instead the sentence must be replaced with another non-lethal punishment of choosing. They cannot be prevented from going back to their homeland of Azudour, cannot be put in danger knowingly, and no harm may fall on their reproductive capacities.
YOU ARE READING
Tales of Six
FantasiaIn a world where elemental magic is as common as steel, a young woman discovers she can push the limits of what is possible with shadows. But how ? And why her ? Fire, air, light, nature, water, and shadow are the six pure elements that make up ele...
