Chapter 26: The Black Mark

Chapter 26: The Black Mark

Leslie answered quickly once she realized I wasn’t alone. She reached an arm out and I handed her clothes to her. Leila made a strange sound in her throat when she saw Leslie but covered it up by pointing the new girl into the bathroom.

“Remove your armor and pass it out so this boy can clean it for you,” she instructed.

“Okay,” the girl squeaked as she moved to do what Leila asked.

Once she was gone, Leila took a moment to give Leslie a once-over. “You’re the girl with the black mark, aren’t you?”

I looked back at Leslie who was looking down at the floor. Were those tears in her eyes?

“Yes,” she whimpered. “But I can explain.”

“Nothing you say will change the fact of it,” Leila replied, her voice icy. “Nobody will touch someone with a black mark. Not if they want to keep their standing. I suggest you look for a new home somewhere away from the city.”

“Um, what’s a black mark?” I asked, standing beside Leslie and placing a hand on her shoulder. She was shaking.

When Leslie didn’t answer, Leila explained. “Black marks are given when someone breaks one of the taboos. These unwritten rules have been abided by for centuries and are what separate us from the uncivilized.”

Leslie didn’t deny the accusation. She looked at the floor with tears streaming down her cheeks. The girl in the bathroom chose that moment to pass her clothes through the door. Leila accepted them and held out a tunic to me.

I looked at the armor and back to Leslie before pushing her hand away. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I can help you after all.”

Leila’s face darkened as she narrowed her eyes. “I beg your pardon? Have I said or done something offensive?”

“Actually, yes,” I replied. “First you see my friend is upset and you ignored her. Then you gave her this black mark thing. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t want anything to do with people like you. She was so excited to join your group but it turns out you’re all just a bunch of jerks.”

Several of the women within earshot started walking over but Leila stopped them with a shake of her head. “You misunderstand. I didn’t issue the mark. You said you didn’t know about them and I was explaining. Nothing more. Not a thing I said about her situation made it any more or less real.”

“I know about black marks,” I said in a low voice. “Maybe not by that name. In my world being an orphan gets you the same treatment. People are worried I’m going to steal or cause trouble everywhere I go. Leslie never treated me that way, not once even, even though she knows what I am. I’m honored to know her and be her friend. You, not so much. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a friend to cheer up.”

“Wait,” Leslie said, taking my hand and squeezing it. “Please clean the clothes for them.”

“But why?” I asked, glaring at Leila. “She was cruel.”

“No she wasn’t,” Leslie sighed, wiping her tears on her sleeve. “Most of the other adventurers won’t even talk to me. She’s one of the nice ones. Besides, you’re the reason that girl got slimed.”

“Fine,” I grumbled, still incensed on her behalf. “Hand it over.”

Leila raised an eyebrow but did as I asked. I sat next to the circle and mopped it up a bit to make sure it was still perfect before infusing more mana into the ritual. Slime evaporated in a blue puff of smoke and the tunic was clean.

When Leila handed me the next piece, I knew I needed help.

“Leslie,” I whispered, tugging her pants. “I need your mana.”

“What?” She asked, realization only dawning when I reached for her hand. “Oh, you want to do that link thing again.”

I nodded and she sat next to me. Together we powered five more rituals to clean all of the girl’s clothes. Leila observed our work in silence, not asking any questions like I thought she would.

When I handed the last piece back to her, she asked, “What class are you?”

“Craftsman,” I replied curtly.

She nodded. “That’s a shame. That skill would be useful for an adventurer.’

I nodded to Leslie. “She wanted to join you guys, not me.”

Leila glanced at Leslie. “Is that true?”

“But I’m marked,” Leslie squeaked, her voice breaking.

Leila laughed. “As I said before, I was just educating your friend. I’m too old to care what society,” she paused to stare at me. “or this boy thinks of me. If you think you have what it takes to be one of my lackeys, come see me at the guild tomorrow morning.”

“Really?” Leslie squealed, her excitement getting the better of her before clearing her throat. “Ahem. I mean yes, Ma’am.”

Leila walked over to the door and passed the cleaned clothes to a very anxious girl in the bathroom. “Good. Since that’s settled, we will take up no more of your time. I hope to see you again, uh, I don’t think I got your name.”

“He’s Oliver Evans,” Leslie announced on my behalf. “And I’m Leslie Berkshire.”

“Are you related to Beverly Berkshire?” Leila asked, her eyes widening.

“She was my Grandmother,” Leslie admitted.

“Very interesting,” Leila replied. “It’s a small world after all. I’ve adventured with her extensively. She’s a good Witch. How is she?”

Leslie frowned. “I wouldn’t know. She went back to the old country when I was little.”

“A shame,” Leila said. “If you’re half the woman she was, you’ll make a fine addition to my team. Let’s talk more in the morning.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Leslie replied, curtsying.

Leila chuckled and spun on her heels to return to the girls. Leslie grabbed my arm and tugged me toward the exit. It was obvious she was anxious to leave.

Once we got outside, she threw her arms around me and hugged me. At first, I thought she was crying on my shoulder but then she let out a loud whoop. “Yes! I can’t believe that just happened. Leila just recruited me. This is what I’ve always dreamed about.”

“Are you okay?” I asked, still a little confused by her rapid mood swing. I was used to comforting my friends when they were sad but Leslie was all over the place.

Her smile drooped a little but not all the way. “I’m used to it. People give me that speech about my mark all the time. I’m really sorry you had to see it, and I’m sorry it upset you.”

“Of course, it upset me!” I barked, feeling protective of my friend. “It will always upset me and I won’t help anyone who treats you badly.”

“Then there’s a lot of people you won’t help,” she replied, the last of the smile leaving her face.

Even though I knew the question was more taboo than even the black mark, I asked, “What did you do?”

Leslie bit her lower lip and looked away. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“And you’ll never have to,” I replied, taking her hand in what I hoped was a reassuring way.

***

I felt closer to Leslie as we walked through town hand in hand. It was only when I turned off the street heading to the guild that she stopped me.

“Where are you going?” She asked, looking confused.

I patted my bag. “I need to deliver that package. It’s the one that I forgot to deliver the other day.”

“Oh,” she replied absentmindedly. “Do you want me to come with you?”

I shook my head. “No, I got this. See you tomorrow?”

She looked like she wanted to argue she nodded and squeezed my hand before letting me go. While I was still a little confused about everything that happened, I was happy Leslie was going to finally get to join a group. Leila was one of the big ones, she’d mentioned.

The building I was supposed to deliver the package to was an office, and they were closed. A man in a fancy suit tapped his watch vigorously while shaking his head from the other side of the locked door. I grinned at him and squeezed the oversized package out of my bag. His eyes widened when he saw it and he quickly unlocked the door.

“You’re late!” He barked, motioning for me to follow him.

We walked to the back where he directed me to place the package on a table. I noticed a flickering light as we walked.

Luminary

Grade: C

Condition: 2

Created by: MaxCorp

Error: Item Damaged. Requires lubricant. Risk of imminent failure.

The man looked angry so I decided not to say anything and placed the package on the table. Once I’d done so, he slammed five copper next to it and yelled at me some more. “The next time you’re this late I am going to refuse delivery. Then what will you do.”

Then the light flicked out. He cursed out loud and rushed over to mess with it. The room was dark as he didn’t appear to have any regular lightbulbs in the building.

While I didn’t want to help him in the first place, I also didn’t have any of the required lubricants to make the light work again. I couldn’t help myself and said, “You might want to get some lubricant for that. It’s damaged.

When he didn’t reply, I made my way to the exit. I was in a hurry to get home. It had been a few days since I’d made it back in time for dinner, and I was curious to see what Miss Aires’ meal deliveries were like.

The dining hall was buzzing with activity when I arrived. Nobody noticed the lone kid walking in after the feast started but there was still plenty of food to go around. Aluminum trays filled with all kinds of dishes lined the long table. Nobody bothered to do much more than open each one before they dug in and helped themselves.

I made myself a plate and snuck out the back and up the fire escape. After a long day, I wanted some peace and quiet to think about everything I’d learned.

There was also another reason I went to the roof. Setting my food down for a moment, I went to the spot where I’d hidden the book about magic bags and slipped it into the bag. Now it was safe in a place only I could access it.

Then I settled down to try some of the food. Just like in the restaurant, it was delicious. Fried chicken and mashed potatoes along with an assortment of fresh vegetables that were nice and crisp. It was a huge upgrade from the slop we normally ate. I made a mental note to thank Miss Aires the next time I saw her.

I was about halfway through my meal when Beth and Sam interrupted me. Sam dumped a handful of copper in my hand and said, “That’s one hundred ten copper. We delivered eleven of the B ranked packages. Did you pick up any more for tomorrow?”

I shook my head. “I was busy and didn’t go back to the guild.”

Beth smiled. “That’s okay. We’ll go with you in the morning.”

“What about Gordon?” I asked, noticing he wasn’t with them.

“About that,” Beth replied, looking nervous. “He’s still a little out of it after whatever happened to him this morning. We couldn’t even use him to deliver packages.”

“I guess we shouldn’t take him to the guild,” I said. “It doesn’t seem like he’ll be able to control himself.”

“I agree,” Sam replied. “But it could be useful if he gets his memory wiped every day. “Then he might pick on us less.”

“Bite your tongue,” Beth scolded Sam. “That’s mean.”

I yawned, realizing it had been a while since I’d gotten a full night’s sleep. “I think I’m going to turn in early.