The Deadmages by J.C.G. & C.E.M.

Chapter 3: The City Square

     The town square was a sprawling courtyard filled with merchants bartering and selling their wares to customers of all kinds. Ivory turned around to face us, walking backwards.

"Welcome to Eganbu, the haven for all subments and their supporters," she said. She turned around to walk normally.

As I looked around I realized that no one here seemed to be of the normal four guilds. A girl floated right in front of us absorbed in a conversation she was having with a man walking next to her. I gawked as she passed. "How is she doing that?" I asked Ivory. "Doing what? Oh, you mean Sydney? She is a subment like most of the people here. She controls gravity."

"Is a subment what you call deadmages here?" Blake asked, staring at a booth full of intricate cakes and pastries.

"Yes. We don't use the term deadmage here since it is clearly not accurate, I mean we're not dead, are we?" Without waiting for an answer she pulled a couple Lucres - triangular shaped copper coins - out of her pocket and tossed one to each of us. "I suggest you go enjoy one of those pastries before they sell out." Sure enough, as we turned around half of what we had just witnessed at the stall were being devoured by the surrounding shoppers. We hurried over to buy one. Blake came away with a large piece of chocolate and strawberry swirl cake topped with vanilla cream icing. I ordered next, deciding on the banana and chocolate cake with blueberry icing.

As I strode back over to our small group, who had stopped and sat at a group of tables next to a water fountain, I took time to scan the surroundings. The buildings surrounding the square all rose to five or six stories. Some sporting balconies or gardens. Almost every window was filled with the warm glow of candlelight and people could be seen moving behind the curtains. The courtyard below seemed to be filled with merchant stalls as far as the eye could see and selling anything the mind could imagine. People bustled around, collecting things they needed as children squealed and chased each other around the fountain.I was pleased to see no poor or starved people sitting in the alleys. Everyone seemed to have a home and good food. After seeing all this I realized that some people were visibly using their powers, with no fear of being jailed. A woman sitting on the fountain was amusing some youngsters, most likely her children, by weaving small sparks of lightning between her fingertips. Another man far to my right generated snow cones out of the water molecules of the air. I assumed he must control ice, but there was so much I didn't know still and I chose not to assume permanently. By now I had reached the group and stopped, savoring my cake I caught up on the conversation.

"You will go with Ivory to our barracks. Tomorrow we will pair you with others controlling elements similar to yours. They will help you to understand your powers and will be in charge of adding your element to the log. People here can have the same powers, but it isn't very common. You can use your time tomorrow to understand your schedule and to develop your own fighting style and techniques. Each element has its strengths and weaknesses. Figure them out tomorrow you will need them for sparring and training sessions. I now bid you goodbye and good luck." with that final note he turned and strode away from us.

"Alright, hurry up newbies. Chop chop." She hurried away, turning right down a side street and opening a pair of doors that lead to a downwards stairwell. As she entered them she grabbed a torch off the wall and struck it against a match she pulled from her pocket. We descended silently, listening to the trickle of running water through the pipes in the wall. We seemed to walk forever with no variation in direction or elevation. When we finally reached a door, Ivory stopped and turned around. "When we walk in, be careful. there is basically an explosion of subment powers being used constantly. Sometimes people don't realize that they are about to kill someone. So, just, you know, don't get beheaded. The general wouldn't like that."

"What the general likes is the least of my concerns. I could get beheaded," I muttered following her through. As soon as I stepped through a girl ran up to Ivory. "IVORY!!!" the girl shouted as she wrapped her arms around Door Girl, almost sending her flying back into me. "Butterfly, Snake, This is my sister, Kennedy." She looked up at us, almost giving me a heart attack. Her entire neck was missing. "Kennedy, stop that." Ivory reprimanded. Her neck suddenly appeared, looking perfectly normal for the fact that it wasn't there a second ago. "Go find Ollie and bring him back please, I want him to meet Blake," she said, waving her off. She turned back to us,

"Sorry about that, she likes to freak out the newcomers. Last time she manipulated the light to make her legs invisible. Nearly gave the latest recruit a heart attack as well."

"It's fine. Who's Ollie?" Butterfly asked.

"Ollie is the oldest of the light manipulators. He is who you will be with tomorrow for you to learn about your skill. As for you," she looked at me, "We haven't had anyone with vine magic before. So I think I'll pair you with Trish. She controls wood. Unfortunately, that is the closest to yours I can think of, sorry."

As she finished a new boy walked up, who I assumed to be Ollie. He was slightly taller than average height and had a friendly smile. His head was a mop of red and freckles dotted his nose and cheeks. He wore long pants with a simple white shirt and a leather vest over it. A sword hung by his side and a flashlight swung on the opposite side of his hip.

"Aloha! I'm Ollie, the captain of the Light Lion guild. Which one of you is the light person?" He spoke quickly, his voice smooth as honey. Blake raised his hand. Ollie clamped his hand on Butterfly's arm, exposing his rainbow-colored tattoo.

"Ah, I see. So you're probably someone who can manipulate color, which includes the color of your skin. You can use your powers to camouflage. That makes sense." He continued holding onto Butterfly's wrist as Ollie dragged him down a side corridor. Blake angrily protesting the whole way.

I stared for a second before realizing that another person had appeared. It was a young girl, seeming to be around the age of ten. She had gently sweeping locks of golden brown hair running down to the small of her back. The most striking thing about her was her eyes. They were a captivating shade of blue, like the sky in the middle of a cloudless day. The rest of her features were soft and small. However, at the moment, her beautiful face was shrouded by a scowl.

"This is the moron I have to teach? He's a twig. His magic will be weak. What is he anyway? A squirrel like me? Oh, no! Of course, he is a snake. A sneaky, nasty, awful reptile. He'll be dead by next week."

I was shocked that this was coming from a child that looked so innocent. Then my eyes picked out other pieces of her. Her dirty tunic, frayed at the end. The steely edge in her eyes along with the wicked wooden spikes hanging in special slots built into her boots.

"I'll have you know that I already took one guy out, thank you very much. I've knocked out so many people I have started to lose count over the years and I'm the fiercest fighter here. I suggest you watch your words very carefully, you don't want me as an enemy. I can guarantee that." I hoped that I didn't have to fight her. For a little girl, she was fierce. Unfortunately, as I was lead to the same place as Blake, I knew I would have no choice but to battle for my life. We eventually made it to the end of the hallway, and what was at it stopped me in my tracks.