Sparnas

The Fabric

The next day, Dimma went to an old friend of his, bringing the scrap of fabric in a clear plastic pocket. A renowned dressmaker. he had a huge shop right in the middle of the plaza of Shuka. The shop was filled with customers it was hard to navigate.

The shop was large, occupying two lots on the ground floor of the plaza. Huge chandeliers on the ceilings and there were bolts of colorful fabrics lining the walls. The shop assistants were busy bringing out bolts of cotton and silk. Young and old otherWings were flitting in and out of the changing rooms, trying out ready to wear dresses.

The dressmaker waved as he saw Dimma maneuvering around the bodies of customers. He had a black wing with some red swirls and white stripes on it. They went into the first floor area where some of the shop assistants were measuring the customers for a custom-made dress. The dressmaker led him to his office. He poured coffee for them, Dimma drank the coffee in one long gulp. His head was still pounding.

He had gone back to his office after seeing Liath home the day before. Reading his reports and rereading them again to catch anything he might have missed. There was nothing new to be found. Then he went to Gungla to present his report to Admiral Modry. He had a long night. He thought of bringing the files to Hegal's aerie after his meeting with the dressmaker. He needed a fresh pair of eyes.

The dressmaker poured another cup of coffee for Dimma. Strong BlackWing coffee with no sugar or cream, the way Dimma liked it.

The dressmaker's eyes brightened up when he saw the fabric. "This is called Vermu silk, one of the most prized. The thread was from the rare Vermu silkworm of the southwest. The silkworms were fed with the freshest tea leaves and a rare herb. When they are ready to grow, they will spin a cocoon of the pink, some even pale red. Only sick silkworms spin bright red cocoons. So in a way, this is the gift of dying Vermu silkworms." He said.

"So soft, like a caress on the skin. The color never fades. Even some of the RedWings couldn't afford this. I had only one bolt of it for the last five years but it is finished now. I have to wait for twelve more years in order to make more of the silk. As the rare herb that gives the silkworm this color blooms every twelve years. We tried farming the silkworms and planting the herb. We never harvest a sprig. The herb died. We even sent them to the WhiteWings to cultivate in their greenhouse, but they can't do it. So every twelve years we'll send a team down to Morsterra to gather the herb. It's getting rarer each time. With all the GrayWing mines." He shook his head sadly.

He continued, "Most ladies make do with pink Vermu silk. They are cheaper and still as exclusive, just not as exclusive as the red ones."

"Do you remember who bought this particular silk?"

"Quite a few from the elite circle. I don't remember all of them but I can check my ledger a little bit later. As you can see, we're swamped here, it's the last day of my new year sale. I'll send a note to a Brother messenger, later today if possible."

"Thank you, Brother."

Late that evening, a messenger came for Dimma in his office. It was a sealed letter from the dressmaker.

"From the latest bolt; Vermu silk. Pilkas S, Pilkas G, Cinza-Harmaa G, Raudonas U, Rooi D," The list had also buyers of the previous bolts. Dimma began to plan the next few days to meet with all of them and inspect their Vermu silk.