Before the Beginning Begins Again- Haro's Story pt.1
Anshtegrii was like every other trade town in the Empire, absolutely busy. The summer that year had been unusually hot but that still didn't matter, it was business as usual for the merchants coming in and out which meant a steady lesson in the town's economy for a certain young man who'd rather not be studying. Haro Gandesht, the son of the governor of one of the busiest trade towns in the state of Cordeshaa.
"Veldeg, not to be rude but we've been over this lesson a million times already! I think I know that three of their loras are worth one of our threns!" Haro threw his head back as he whined to his tutor.
The elderly man sighed and shook his head. Veldeg had been dealing with the young lad for years and he knew all too well when a lesson was coming to an end, in fact he thought it a near miracle that he lasted up until the noon bells today.
"Off with you then! We'll be going over exports from the capital state tomorrow then, something you could avoid if-
"If you just stay a little longer and listen. We can get so much more lessons done and you could have more time off if I don't have so much to teach you..." Haro cut the old man off with a well versed lecture he managed to memorize.
Veldeg threw a book square at Haro who tried to dodge it but ended up falling out of his seat. He laughed as he rolled to get up commenting that the old man should teach him his famous throws instead of his infamously boring lessons. A few more books were thrown before Haro escaped the library and the wrath of his long suffering tutor. It was nearly a routine that these two would squabble before he left, something Haro claimed as him providing exercise for the old man.
"Free at last Goldy?" a taunting yet familiar voice chimed from behind the young lad as the doors to the library snapped shut.
Haro jumped and branded a knife he had hidden in his shirt but that only elicited a snorting giggling from the voice.
"Do you really want to pull something out like that while you're still under this roof?" the voice continued its taunts as it slithered away from the hall they were in.
Haro flattened his lips and walked closer to the cool grey walls, following the voice in the shadows with his knife still drawn. He rounded the corner into a small hallway that leads to a couple storage rooms and a large window that was in dire need of repairs.
"Must we do business this way?" He hissed as he snuck behind the curtain of the window.
The voice giggled in a childish way that sounded almost innocent, almost.
"You wanted to do things the hard way Goldy." the voice snickered and a light thump followed as a neat pile of clothes landed in front of Haro. He picks them up and quickly changes, trying to ignore the giggles coming from the other side of the curtains.
"Strange it is, that someone like you would be wanting to work with folks like us..." the voice commented while Haro threw his clothes at them.
He couldn't deny that it was odd, the son of a governor working with a band of spies who keep an eye on the darker side of the empire's wealth. But he had his reasons, as most do when they decide to do something out of the ordinary or in his case, absolutely insane.
"I've got my talons and you've got your echoes, Whisper. I don't ask why you got tangled up with the Locksmith." Haro flipped his hood up over his head, the greenish cerulean robe hiding his golden locks and shimmering eyes. He folded his clothes up in a messy bunch and stuffed them in a large crack in the wall.
"If you're ready to go then let's go, I need to be back before moon rises." Haro pushes a loose panel in the window and slides effortlessly to the other side. He doesn't wait up for Whispers since he's learned by now that they'll find their own "fun" way to the check point. After checking around to make sure the coast was clear, Haro checked his pockets and found a piece of paper with three places listed on it in a very cryptic way. "A trees favorite place to drink", "The key that has no lock", and "The bird's only nest". Haro screwed his face up looking at the locations. Two of these check points were new, which meant dealing with new people. He sighed at the thought of having to go through more initiations as was a strange custom at every check point, a show of trust and willingness he gathered. He stuffed the paper back into a pocket and took out a grey crystal he had stashed in his pants. He thumbed it before crossing his face and body with it while chanting a spell over and over.
"Shrendorii loc segor des cel"
Haro couldn't see if the spell worked as usual, he had to trust that it did and that he'd go unnoticed until the crystal turned a dull dark grey.
He muddled over his pockets after that, checking to see if the Locksmith gave him anything else or any more instructions, and they did.
A small dark black leather scroll that had the name "Glonhel" on it.
Haro felt his palms grow sweaty as his nerves nearly got the best of him. He knew a Glonhel, an old childhood friend he hadn't seen since his mother became the governor of Anshtegrii. His family ran an inn for the merchants coming in and out of the town, it was very lucrative last he heard.
Haro stared at the scroll a bit longer before stuffing it back into a pocket. He didn't want to think about it, didn't want to believe it was the Glonhel he knew, but he did know this- A black scroll means death and Glonhel is either to be executed or is to be made an executioner, neither a favorable position to be in.
Taking a deep breath in, Haro snuck around the estate till he reached a tree that would take him to the other side of the wall. He had become quite adapt at sneaking out and back in without magic, a skill the Locksmith found quite useful. Once on the other side Haro took his usual route to "The bird's only nest", one that would be hard pressed to locate since he stuck to the trees. Swinging and leaping from tree to tree, occasionally bouncing off a large unharvested crystal, Haro had made his way to the location in record time.
A small tavern it was, worn and in need of a few new windows this was "The bird's only nest". Manned by the Bird, she acted as an informant and instructor. Haro never liked the tavern having grown up in luxury, but he held Bird in high regards and more so than even the Locksmith.
"And what brings Goldy to my fine establishment?" she howls when she sees Haro walk in.
The lad sweeps the hood down and off his face, always surprised that Bird could recognize anyone with the crystal's spell on them.
"No matter how many times I come in here with it on, I'm still shocked when you can see me." he sits at the bar and runs his hands through his short golden locks.
She lets out a hardy laugh and her long black curls bounce on her shoulders.
"Aye and you ought to know the reason, or do they not teach much of us half breeds anymore?"
Haro looks at her with wide eyes and then looks her up and down for any signs of something inhuman.
"You'll not find anything physically I'm afraid. Me mom was the half breed and I only inherited the few special traits of her dad's family." She huffs while pouring Haro a drink.
"Was she half Alzenlai?" he asks.
Bird smiles at his guess and nods.
"Generally speaking yes and we'll leave it at that. But there are four kinds of Alzenlai up at those mesas."
Haro knew very little of the Alzenlai except that they are masters of the mines and magic produced by the crystals have no effect on them. But like Bird said, no one really learns about them or their half human children not unless they meet one.
"Well enough about me boy, what jobs has the Locksmith given you today?" she asks.
Haro takes the piece of paper with the locations out and she swipes it quickly from his hands.
"A trees favorite place to drink will be that small fishing pond, look for an elderly man with a long beard he goes by Barks. And the key with no lock will be at your home."
Haro felt his heart drop to his stomach.
"Why my home? There's no one there who works for the locks and keys save for myself and I'm just a-"
"A key without a lock. Locations are locks are we're their keys. Not all locations can be considered locks though. Thought you'd figure this much out by now." Bird interrupts him and tosses the paper back at his face.
He knew about the locks and keys but he didn't think that a key could operate in another domain, especially their own. He wondered why he'd need to be there and what he'd need to do. Usually Bird would give him the instructions on what the Locksmith wanted him to do and how to go about it but she's said nothing thus so far. Then he remembered, the scroll.
"There's one more thing" he pulls out the dark scroll and sets it on the bar.
Her eyebrows raise and her bright green eyes stare at the leather bound scroll.
"And who's the unfortunate soul set to receive this?" she asks, rolling the scroll over to view the name.
"His name is Glonhel." Haro replies, averting his eyes from hers.
Bird could see his nerves unfold, he was terrible at hiding his emotions.
"You know him?" she asks, a question that makes him tense up.
"I know someone with that name. It's a common name in this state so..." Haro trails off as if he's denying the possibility that this Glonhel is the one he used to know.
His stomach churns at the idea of having to kill again, the first time wasn't easy and it was messy. He couldn't sleep for days on end and hardly ate. Now he might have to kill someone who was his friend.
"This is the sort of bargain you deal with when under the Locksmith." Bird starts as she pours herself a rich dark wine.
"You keys come to him with favors that can't be dealt with in normal ways. The trade off is to deal with the unsavory folk around here who are looking to make life in Anshtegrii easy for them which isn't always fair nor legal and yet they try to get away with it."
Haro knows that, that's why he asked for this favor, that's why he's a key, and that's why this hurts. He's the son of the governor of Anshtegrii, she's supposed to protect these people and yet she's failed the one person who has always been there for him and whom he loves dearly.
He balls his hand into a fist while trying to calm his nerves.
"You know nothing about this?" he asks Bird, a bit more composed.
She shakes her head and downs her drink.
"Barks is another informant like myself, he usually deals with most of the ins and outs of black scrolls that have to be dealt with in a lockless domain." she explains to him.
Haro takes a quick sip of the rich liquor Bird poured for him, it's a dark and bitter wine that sends goosebumps up and down the flesh and a regret of drinking it yet you always go back for another sip. It did exactly that and it seemed like it's what he needed to get himself in better shape.
"Whispers came for me today, do you think they'll be a part of this?" He asks her, picking the scroll back up.
Bird grimaces at the name, she never really cared for Whispers but respected their ability to never be seen.
"If they are, then expect for a quick and easy clean up. I know that doesn't sound encouraging but they're known to be fast and efficient."
He relaxes a bit more at hearing that and starts to hope that Whispers will be working with him on the black scroll. He hadn't worked with them that much but whenever he did the job got done with quickly and quietly. They were much more friendlier with him than the other keys he's had to work with albeit slightly annoying when they're bored.
"Will Barks be at the pond right now?" Haro asks as he gets up.
Birds shrugs her shoulders.
"Honestly I'm not sure, he's there when he wants to be there. He's the only one with a lock that has no real schedule. The Locksmith hasn't said anything so I'm not quite sure if that's supposed to be apart of his appearance or if he's got something over Locksmith. Either way if he's there you can get this ordeal over with quicker and if not, you can always come back here and wait." Bird explains to Haro.
He straightens himself up, hand on his hips, and stares up to the ceiling with his wide golden eyes.
"Never in my life would I have ever thought that I'd prefer studying economics and trade..."
Bird spits out her drink and laughs so hard she has to clutch the bar for support.
"Our Goldy is such a fine lad, he ne'er spills his drink, he's a boy who can actually think and his hair is made of the finest mesas gold-"
Bird starts singing, a habit of hers when she has a good laugh and good drink. Her short songs always seemed to calm Haro down when his nerves were on the rise but it didn't help much today.
He cracks a forced smile and takes in a deep breath before making his way to the door.
"I'm off!" he shouts, pulling his hood back up.
The Bird waves him off and continues her song, repeating the first part again and again.
Haro stretches a bit before rushing up a tree and starting his way towards the pond. The blue of his hood and clothes blending in perfectly with the cerulean on the leaves. Light and quick on his feet he made it there by the third after noon bell. The pond was mostly vacant save for a couple old men with their fishing lines and bags of snacks and booze. He scanned from the treetops if he could see anyone with a long beard but to his dismay no one fit that description. He starts to contemplate whether or not he should wait or head back the the tavern when he's shocked to a hear a little voice right behind him.
He nearly falls out of the tree when he hears it, quickly straightening up when he realize who it is.
"Must you speak with no warning?" he hisses to Whispers.
They let out a soft snort laugh and sigh.
"He'll be here soon, Barks wanted to grab something for the well job" Whispers repeats.
Haro's stomach starts up again and the wine from earlier is now working against him.
"Once we talk to him, then what?" he asks, not really wanting the answer.
Whispers didn't say anything for a while, an unusual and uneasy thing for them to do if anyone has known them for any amount of time.
"Then fate will rest in our hands. Be it red, be it dead, be it even alive if lucky. No soul's name written shall escape the black scroll held by a key."
Haro held his breath and stomach, begging to the dear goddesses for this to be over with quickly.
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