Chasing Sparks

Chapter 15.1

Celie slowly rolled one of the small gems she had found on the Skree, between her fingers. She then flipped it up and down a few times, before replacing it in her pouch. It was eight days since she’d killed the Skree and time for the next phase.

She was sitting on a log looking out across the lake towards the house on the opposite shore. It dwarfed the small wooden dwellings around it and seemed out of place in the woodland surroundings. The Y’Kara house also looked bigger than Celie remembered it. It had always been a big ugly stone structure but it seemed even bigger and uglier now.

Despite being the largest house for miles around, she knew this was merely a country retreat for the Y’Karas. Where the Y’Kara’s main stronghold was, she had no idea. In fact, the Y’Kara’s likely had a home in every major city throughout the land, she seemed to remember this being common among the ruling Houses. But Celie didn’t particularly care how many houses they had. Wherever, Lerrick was, she’d find him.

Still looking out across the lake, she remembered one of the small dwellings next to the house was an inn and this was probably as good a place as any to start. So, Celie began making her way round the lake towards the collection of old ramshackled buildings.

She was keen to stay out of sight and avoid trouble if possible, so walked beyond the tree line, staying clear of open ground. She knew she could take care of herself but creating a ruckus would not help her cause. Quiet and deadly were the order of the day.

She approached the buildings from the cover of the forest, keeping herself well hidden until the last possible moment. When she did finally step out onto the dirt track opposite the inn, she crossed over and went in quickly. The street was completely deserted, however, and her caution likely unnecessary.

A sign hung above the door saying, rather unimaginatively ‘The Lakeside Inn’. It was barely readable and not in the best condition but the inn itself seemed in half-decent repair.

As she entered, the interior was a bit bigger than she expected. But maybe that was just because it was empty. Empty that is except for the barman and a man with his head in his hands slumped over his drink. The barman simply raised his eyebrows in recognition of her entering and continued with his chores. Not your typical friendly sort, who jumped all over new customers with smiles and platitudes.

“Business slow today?” Celie asked.

The innkeeper looked up, as if surprised someone should try to engage him in conversation. “Huh. Has been for a few days now. Since all the wells headed off to the pols.”

"Wells?" Celie asked.

“Nobles,” the innkeeper said.

"Pols?"

“Capital,” the keeper muttered before disappearing out the door behind the bar on some sort of errand.

It wasn’t to get her a drink she noticed. He hadn’t even asked her what she wanted. Celie sat patiently on a bar stool, waiting for the man to return. She could hear the other man at the end of the bar snoring. So he was in fact asleep and not dead.

Eventually the barman returned and there was nothing in his hand to suggest his errand had been a success.

“Why?” Celie asked.

“Why what?” came the slightly predictable reply.

“Why have all the wells gone to the pols?” trying out the new words she'd learnt.

“Tourney,” said the man.

Celie looked at him with genuine surprise. There hadn’t been a Tourney in over fifteen years. She remembered the last one had been for the dryad spark. She also seemed to remember feeling proud it was a young Forester woman who won it.