"And you're right. I do still have my bargaining chip. Out of the things
that I've heard, people have told me that Sir Wilhelm has a fascination
with the mystical and rarities of the world. Am I correct?"
Wilhelm
had to force himself from grimacing upon those words. The only things
he couldn't control of himself was just that. When he saw something
rare, he found himself possessed with a powerful desire to have it. But
those words coming from a coin-less client only meant that he was
caught. Rare things were his one weakness, but despite this, his heart
was starting to beat in his chest with anticipation.
"Have you heard of the Watchers, boy?"
Wilhelm felt his eyebrows lift.
Lorena
continued, seemingly fully aware of having caught Wilhelm's attention.
"They are the race that lives on Tranquility, horned beings that no one
has ever seen. Supposedly they were charged with protecting that
floating island from land dwellers. Protecting a treasure high up in the
sky." She leaned forward, Wilhelm doing the same unconsciously. "Legend
has it they could communicate with the gods. Their horns acted like
little antennas that tapped into the divine frequencies. They could see
the future. Or so they say." One slender hand reached out, dropping
something small and black onto the table.
Wilhelm's eyes stared
at the object on the table, his mind almost blanking out upon seeing it.
Was that a horn? Was that a horn of a Watcher? How was that possible?!
He blinked, forcing himself to snap out of his trance. He had to stay
composed! The last thing he needed was to throw himself all over the
thing, especially if it was a fake. Wilhelm's fingers itched to take the
object from the table, but he at least managed to keep his hand from
trembling as he reached out to touch it.
"One for the
information." Wilhelm looked up at Lorena, the second of the pair of
horns sitting prettily in her fingers. The woman had a sly grin on her
face. "And the second for the trip there."
Wilhelm returned his
eyes back to the table, his fingers wrapping around the horn. It felt
like bone in his hand, not like a piece of stone or wood shaped to mimic
a horn. It weighed like a piece of solid bone, almost reminded him of a
human's skull. How could he be sure of it's validity? At the very
least, the woman was perfect in creating a copy--it wasn't made out of
cheap material, it didn't look like the horn of an animal. It didn't
look painted black, didn't look sanded or trifled with. It just looked
like a horn snapped off of its owner's head, the ends were even stained
with darker-red blood, almost black. Wilhelm took a second to ponder his
answer, perhaps the longest he had ever taken in pondering answers. He
tried really hard not to consider how he lost his advantage.
"I
can be assured of their validity, correct?" He placed the horn back on
the table, closer to him. He smiled, almost entirely genuine. What could
he say, he got his hands on a truly rare object. Legendary even! "I met
with her once in the heart of the Vanathul Ranges. However, if you
don't take a specific route to the ranges it is near impossible to find
the footpath leading to her hermitage. The road isn't too dangerous, but
once we get into the Vanathul ranges, anything could happen." He
shrugged, then smiled, casting a glance toward Mirrah before back to
Lorena. "I guess since we're going to be showing you the way, there's no
need for me to give you the rest of the directions?" He didn't show it,
but technically, he was under oath to never give directions of where
Phsara's home was to strangers. Showing the way, however, was a
completely different thing.