The Bartender Turned Crime Boss
Not taking stock of its decrepit appearance, Asterin entered the inn only to be met with a mass of unsavory figures. In her time on the streets of Kuvash, she knew quite a few of them from word of mouth. Plenty of them hunted her when she first arrived in the Lower City, and up until now she had done everything she could from falling into their grasps. Mobsters, bounty hunters, and even members of the assassins and thieves guilds all turned in her direction when she stepped through the door.
Except for the bartender towards the center of the room. He continued cleaning his glass and whistling a simple tune.
A stocky man with a pig-like nose leaned in her direction from one of the many occupied tables, his cigar loosely hanging onto his slim lips as he spoke. “Ye don’t look like one of our scouts, or a new hire. Get lost, outsider.”
While her ragged appearance may have allowed her to blend in with any other person who called the slums home, it seemed even in a room full of criminals she would be the odd one out.
She looked to the bar, where the bartender finally glanced up. He observed the room with a calm expression, yellow cat-like eyes landing on her form. He twirled his curled mustache, cocking his head to the side.
“You don’t look like a regular,” his voice was rich and even. “Might as well head back out the way you came.”
Asterin huffed and walked to the bar, pushing the satchel in his direction. “Androsa sent these for you.”
He didn’t even look down at them. “Great. Consider them delivered. Now go.”
She grit her teeth. “I can’t. A Valkyr told me to stay here.”
A tension settled over the room. She could sense more than a few readying their weapons. Her heart began to pound.
She stood still, evaluating her options. Whatever energy had possessed her in her fight with the Shadowfaen was long gone, lost in her walk to North Vil. And even if it was still there, she doubted she could win toe to toe with trained fighters and killers.
“Look,” she tried. Maybe he could see reason. “There are Shadowfaen attacking the city. If I go out there, I’m dead.”
“And so… you bring that trouble to my doorstep?” The bartender huffed, turning away from her and cleaning some discarded glasses. “I don’t care much for outsiders coming ‘round here. It’s bad for business. So, I reckon you’re better off going against the Shadowfaen than trying to find a place here.”
Anger warmed her body. She wanted to smack the glass out of his hand. Maybe smash it into one of the patrons glaring at her.
But she internally shook herself. No, violence was rarely the best option. Or, at least in this scenario, it was the most suicidal one. She needed to keep a level head or end up like that ambassador.
She winced. Perhaps a bit too soon to think about that. The man had not even passed through the Val yet most likely.
Asterin pressed her left hand down on the counter, leaning towards the bartender.
“Easy there, miss,” someone called from behind her. She could sense several people shift in the crowd, readying themselves in case the bartender gave the go-ahead.
But she ignored them, keeping her attention solely on him. “Shadowfaen are probably worse for business. More Guardians and Valkyr will be patrolling the streets, which will make it harder to conduct your affairs, right , Faraldin?”
His expression remained impassive, though a twinkle shined in his eyes. “And what would you know about my affairs?”
Asterin examined him, noting a faint shimmer against his tanned skin.
A Glamour…
She recalled the rumors that surrounded the man in front of her, of the connection that may bind them…
“You’re the best of the best,” Asterin said, watching him closely as she traced the surface of the table with her ring finger. “But this empire has seen the mightiest fall on a whim. You need all the help you can get.”
His eyes flickered down to her hand, widening slightly before his jaw tensed. “Come with me.”
A part of her screamed at the prospect of following a stranger, a man especially, but she would rather take her chances with him than the other Shadowfaen still rampaging in the streets.
Following him, they descended into a dark cellar. She briefly considered that this venture could mean her end. For all she knew, he would tie her up and sell her to any of the patrons upstairs. Aside from her ex-husband, she was the most wanted person in all of the Skies. Perhaps she should have been more cautious up to this point, but… she needed to rely on something , even if it was the reputation of a criminal It would be better than spending another handful of months living in the alleys.
No torture chamber awaited her in the cellar.
The area seemed a bit chaotic at first glance, but the longer Asterin the room the more sense it made. Shove in one corner was what looked like an office of sorts, with bookshelves lining the brick wall behind a high-backed leather chair and large mahogany desk filled with scattered files and papers. In the middle of the cellar stood a circular table with several chairs surrounding it. And the rest of the space was dedicated to piles of boxes upon boxes—most unlabeled.
Asterin’s eyes drifted to a message board next to the table. Various maps and other documents were tacked on it, but what drew her attention were the portraits sporting bounties from criminals across the empire.
One of them was the man right in front of her: Faraldin Al-vashar - six thousand gold pieces.
And just beside it: Asterin Kishpu-La’tzu — one-hundred thousand gold pieces.
Faraldin tapped on her picture. “There is a pretty price out there for you, Asterin.”
She removed her hood, feeling the enchantment wash over her. She crossed her arms, trying to maintain a tough demeanor even though inside she trembled. What if this was a bad idea? What if he really did sell her?
“Now,” he leaned against the side of the board, “you should tell me why I shouldn’t turn you in.”
“Because you’re up there too. And if rumor has it right, I reckon it’s for the same reason as me.”
He raised a perfectly-manicured eyebrow.
“High prices like that can only mean one thing: you have a connection to the House of Malice.” Asterin mirrored his posture, lifting her chin in his direction. “And I can see your Glamour. You should conceal it better.”
“I do, but it’s useless against those with that Mark. Powerful magick users, you lot.”
“I possess no magick. Just the ability to see things differently.”
“Maybe it’s something that has yet to come to fruition.”
Silence stretched between them. Asterin examined the room again, her gaze repeatedly drawn to one of the few labeled boxes: Forbidden Books .
Faraldin broke the silence. “So, you want to work for me? No longer with the Kratise Brothers?”
Asterin didn’t question how he knew her employers. “It’s better than roaming the streets. I heard you offer lodging.”
He nodded. “Free food and lodging along with a weekly wage. Keep any tips folks may hand you, as well. You work shifts in the inn and run whatever jobs I hand you, no questions asked.”
She took the time to mull it over. More for appearance’s sake than anything else. She was just about ready to agree to sleeping the cellar if that’s all he was willing offer.
But just as an added sense of security…
“House’s Promise that I won’t be harmed?” She tensed even though she was the one proposing it.
Yet Faraldin didn’t hesitate in holding out his arm to her. “I will do my best to keep you safe under my care.”
Reaching out with her left hand, she grasped his wrist. Pressing her fingers against his pulsepoint, Asterin focused until her heart beat in tune with his.
“ A promise is a promise ,” she whispered in a language she still did not know the name of.
Her Mark flashed, warming their skin. When she pulled away, a much smaller version marked his pulsepoint.
Faraldin flashed her a grin. She ignored how handsome this new light in his eyes made him seem. “Now, why don’t we discuss you duties more in full?”
Asterin took a seat in front of his desk whilst he leaned back in the high-backed chair. As they talked late into the night, she still couldn’t help but think it was all too good to be true.
And, in fact, it was. For even as Asterin had a list of jobs to run and moved into a spare room, the next week the unexpected happened.
The Wanderers returned for the first time in a century.