A young man walked through the busy streets of the kingdom of Luxivita with the hood of his dark blue cloak pulled up and kept his head down. He walked next to a taller young man wearing a darker blue cloak as they made their way through the Merchants’ District. 

“Once we reach the Riverfront District, we won’t have to worry about the guards,” the taller man whispered. 

The shorter man nodded to him and his breath hitched when a guard bumped into him. His heart pounded quickly. His hands shook. If any of them noticed him, they would send him back to the castle. He swallowed the bile that rose from the thought of that. After learning what his father had planned, it took everything in him to not get sick. 

The guard mumbled an apology without looking at him and kept walking. 

The young man sighed in relief and stood close to the other man as they walked to their destination. “How long until they notice I’m gone?” 

“Not long, but we’re going to get you out first and then come up with a plan,” the taller man answered. 

The Riverfront District came into view and both men felt a little relief when they saw there were no guards at the entrance. Small wooden houses lined its dirt roads that were muddy and thick from yesterday’s rain. Kids were running around and playing games while the adults were either trading goods with one another, talking, or working in their small gardens. 

They walked to the shore of the river where a stocky middle-aged human man with black hair streaked with gray, dark tan skin, and brown eyes stood next to a small boat. When he saw them, he gave the taller man a kind smile and waved. “Varrick, good day to ye.”

The taller man pushed the hood of his cloak back, revealing a handsome young man with golden tan skin, a large scar across his left cheek, and pine green eyes with white eight-point stars surrounding his pupils. He pushed his long wavy black, giving a glimpse of his ears with small pointed tips that revealed his elven blood. “Thank you, Simon, for doing this.” 

Simon waved him off and gave a hearty laugh. “No need to thank me, lad. We take of our own and Leny here needs our help.”

The smaller man pushed his hood back to reveal a young man with fair skin, burgundy eyes that had the same eight-point star surrounding his pupils, and the same long wavy black as Varrick. “I can’t ever thank you enough for this, Simon. I’m forever in your debt.”

“Oy, ye two are gonna make me blush like a virgin on their wedding night,” Simon joked. “I’m just taking ya down the river. Aviur is doing most of the work after that.”

“You’re taking a huge risk helping Len escape, friend,” Varrick reminded him. “You will suffer serious consequences if they find out.”

Simon shrugged. “Think that scares me, boy? I’ve fought in the Great Civil War and how does the kingdom treat us veterans? By giving us one hundred gold coins and said to be on my way. That ain’t even enough to buy a house here in the Riverfront District. This will be my way of telling them “Fuck ye!” Also, my wife adores little Leny here and would be heartbroken if somethin’ happened to him.”

Varrick chuckled and handed the older man a small coin purse. “Regardless, this is for your troubles. Mother said she’ll be giving you and Miss Rasheda some salves and potions as well.” He turned to Len, seeing his younger brother looking around nervously. “Fear not, Lenus. We all know no guards are ever here."

“But when they find out, they’ll come here and interrogate everyone,” worried Len. 

“We Riverfronters stick together no matter what,” Varrick assured him. “Get on the boat and Simon will take you down the river. My friend Aviur is waiting for you and will take you as far as he can to Ebonwood. You might have to walk some of the way, depending on patrols. Mother and I have given you enough coin to buy a room at an inn for a month. I’ll come to you before then and we’ll get you out of Foscentra. Just keep your head down and try not to draw attention to yourself.”

Lenus looked up at Varrick dejectedly. “You know they’ll never give up looking for me once they find out. They’ll tear this district apart and do whatever it takes to bring me back.” 

Varrick’s eyes darkened. “And I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe from them. We’ll figure out how to get you far away from here. If I have to work as the slave of a demonic king or queen in Periculosum to keep you safe in their hellish realm, I’ll do so without hesitation.”

“Contrary to popular belief, Periculosum is actually a nice realm and not the hellish landscape everyone thinks it is,” a female voice informed them. A beautiful human woman who looked as if she could be Varrick’s twin approached. She had the same golden tan skin and her green eyes were the same shade as Varrick’s, only hers didn’t have the star in them, and her black hair was pulled into a loose braid. She gave the men a warm smile and walked over to Lenus. “You’d best hurry, my child. Varrick and I will do everything in our power to keep your disappearance hidden.”

Lenus nodded and hugged her tightly, holding back his tears. “Yes, mother.”

She hugged him even tighter. “Be safe.” She let him go and saw him get on the boat. Simon nodded to her and she nodded back. Her heart broke watching the boat go down the river and taking her youngest child away from her. Though she knew Len knew how to protect himself and wouldn’t be alone, she hated knowing that she couldn’t keep him here. It wasn’t safe for him.

Varrick wrapped his arm around his mother’s shoulders as they watched the boat go further downstream, making it hard to see. He knew Simon wouldn’t have any trouble getting Len to his next destination. “Don’t worry, mother. He’ll be safe in Ebonwood for now. We’ve given him enough money to last about a month and we have…connections there that’ll watch over him.” 

His mother gave a wry smile and nodded. “I know, but I hate that I can’t do anything to truly help him. I’m not his birth mother, but I love that boy like he’s my own. If it were up to me, I’d blast your father and his mother into the afterlife.”

Varrick laughed, hugging her a little tighter. “Mother, you’re a witch who’s lived for many lifetimes. I think you know that plan wouldn’t work.”

“I’m not just Echinacea Gloom-Veil from the Riverfront District, boy,” she quipped. “Sometimes I wish it could be like the good ol’ days when I could kill a royal member and no one batted an eyelash.” When she could no longer see the boat, she began walking back to their small house.

“Careful, mother. If a guard hears you, they could arrest you,” Varrick warned playfully.

Echinacea rolled her eyes. “They are welcome to try.”

A young female Snow Elf sighed while she looked at the bottles on display and frowned when she didn’t see what she needed. “Hopefully Ilys has some potions…,” she mumbled to herself, pushing her light blue, curly hair back.

"Hey, Kara! Is there anything you're looking for in particular?" the female shopkeeper called out to her.

Kara gave her a warm smile and nodded. "I was looking for some healing potions. Are you sold out, Miss Gloriosa?"

The shopkeeper nodded, sighing in exhaustion. "Sorry, your brothers bought the last of them a few days ago, and I’m out of ingredients to make any. Next shipment should be coming in a few days and I’ll be able to make more."

"That’s okay," Kara assured her. "A request came in today and I’m going to ask my sister to join me. I’m sure she has some potions. We'll be leaving tomorrow since it’s near Dusk Light Forest."

"Oh my! You and your siblings are busy these days. Your brothers said some goblins are terrorizing travelers near Bronze River Village," the shopkeeper informed her. "You children take on very dangerous jobs. It makes my heart stop sometimes whenever any of you tell me about your journeys."

Kara laughed. "We’re hardly children, Miss Gloriosa. Our journeys aren’t that dangerous."

The older woman shook her head and shuddered. "You make it sound like it's no big deal. I'm scared to see one goblin let alone a cave full of them! But I suppose that's the life of sellswords. Your siblings take on some very dangerous and questionable jobs."

"They do, but they’re strong and know what they can handle,” Kara assured her. "Thank you, Miss Gloriosa. I'm sure one of my siblings will be back in a few days. Good day." With that, Kara left the shop and started walking on the bridge that separated the alchemist’s home from the town. She saw other merchants selling their wares and calling out to people walking by their stalls.

While Ebonwood wasn't the smallest town in the province, it wasn't large either. The town was known for having a large chapel dedicated to Memoria, the Divine Incarnate of Memories, and Clairvoyance. The priests and priestesses healed those with memory issues, usually with memory loss. They would exorcise spirits that were haunted by their memories. People would also come to the temple to pray to Memoria to help guide them in making future decisions.

"Hey, Kara!"

Kara turned around and saw a young Earth Elf lady jogging to her. Her shoulder-length dark brown hair bobbed as she ran and her amber-brown eyes shone brightly in excitement. Kara would be excited to see her.

...But she was covered in blood and had a large, suspicious-looking object strapped to her back.

The young lady stopped in front of her and smiled. "Hey! Glad I caught you in time! Done with your shopping?" 

"Yes...," Kara replied, arching her eyebrow as she took in her sister's appearance. "Umm, what do you have strapped to your back, Ilys?"

"Oh, this?" Ilys asked, looking over her shoulder. "I was helping Sid the Butcher. I caught a few rabbits early this morning for him. Plus, I helped him with getting some meat ready for him to sell today. He gave me this huge elk as payment!" She grinned as she adjusted it. "I was gonna give it to you so the chapel can have some meat. You were bellyaching the other day that you’re running low. Me and the guys aren’t gonna cook it. We’re not good cooks.”

The Snow Elf couldn’t help but scrunch her nose in slight disgust and feel a little nauseous as she looked at the blood that soaked through wrappings and the back of Ilys’s shirt. “Can you bring it? I don’t want to ruin my clothes.” She looked at her sister, seeing large splatters of blood all over the front of her clothes, arms, and hands. 

“Ah yes, can’t get your pretty light blue dress or beautiful ebony skin dirty with blood,” Ilys joked. “You must maintain your image of purity if you’re going to be high priestess one day.” 

“Seriously, Ilys. You could’ve washed yourself off. You look like someone who went mad and slaughtered everyone in their path,” Kara scolded.

The Earth Elf laughed as she adjusted the straps again and started walking towards the chapel. “Eh, maybe I’ll go mad another day, but not today.”

The two of them walked together through the busy market street of town. Ilys got a lot of stares, but no one approached them. The townspeople were used to seeing her like that, but travelers looked concerned. It didn’t help that Ilys’s burned scars on her right cheek and her arms were on full display which gave her a wild and savage-like appearance. 

They arrived at the chapel and saw some acolytes sweeping in the courtyard while some guests sat on the benches or stood around the flower garden in the center. Ilys and Kara walked inside, seeing many visitors sitting on the pews and praying to Memoria or conversing with each other. The sun shone through the large stained glass windows decorating the hallway in various colors all the way to the large light blue marble statue of Memoria, the Incarnate of Memories and Clairvoyance. Behind the statue were small shrines to other ‘good’ Incarnates in individual alcoves with small tables for offerings in front of them. A few priests and priestesses stood around the statue talking amongst themselves or giving blessings to visitors.

An old human priestess spotted them and rushed over. “Ilyssia Amber-Lilac! Your appearance is not fitting for being in the chapel! What in Memoria’s name are you thinking bringing that-that-What is that?” she hissed, looking at the large lump strapped to the younger lady’s back.

“It’s an elk that Sid the Butcher gave me as payment, Corny,” Ilys replied in a bored tone. A headache started forming and her left eye started twitching the closer the woman got.

The older woman huffed and her hazel eyes looked ice-cold as she glared at her. “Miss Amber-Lilac, you will refer to me as Mother Cornelia! I have told you time and time again that you need to enter through the back door when you’re like this. What will visitors think when they see you covered in blood and holding a large package like that?”

Kara stepped in front of her sister and bowed her head. “I apologize, Mother Cornelia. I forgot to remind her to do that.” She hoped Ilys would follow her lead and apologize so they could move along.

Cornelia sighed and gave Kara a stern look. “Miss Pure-Spring, you don’t need to apologize for your sister’s actions. She knows better, but she refuses to listen.” She looked at Ilys with disgust in her eyes. “She’s lucky that Father Hammond doesn’t forbid her from coming here. Even though she defiles it every chance she gets.”

Before Kara could say anything, Ilys chuckled before shouting in a dramatic and sorrowful voice. “I apologize for my appearance, priestess! I wanted to offer this elk to Memoria herself! I understand why you won't accept an offering from a filthy person such as myself! My gift for the wonderful Incarnate who guides our future decisions and protects our precious memories will never be accepted! For I am just a lowly sellsword who deserves no blessings!” She grinned when she saw most of the visitors watching them and whispering to each other. 

The old woman’s pale wrinkled face flushed from the embarrassing situation. “U-Umm, you can take your offering to our kitchen. I’m sure the cooks will be glad to see that you have given us an elk,” she spluttered and walked away from the young women.

Kara groaned then grabbed Ilys’ hand and quickly walked to the kitchen at the back of the chapel. “One of these days, Mother Cornelia is going to snap and kill you.”

Ilys giggled as they entered the kitchen. She untied the straps holding the elk then tossed it onto the long counter. “Well, it’s either going to be me or Dolion. Let’s see who breaks her first,” she jested. “My bet? It’ll be Dolion. She’ll go on a rant about how he shouldn’t be ‘so promiscuous’ and how we should be leading pure lives fully dedicated to Memoria. Thanks, but no thanks.” She walked out of the kitchen, stretching her arms over her head and feeling some of her bones pop.

Kara shook her head. “Go wash yourself off and then meet me in the study,” Kara told her. “A job request came in today that I know you’ll find most interesting.”