Inside a poor fisherman’s home...
Abigail Grey sat on a small wooden stool beside her mother’s bed. Her father had yelled at her for running off like that, then spent the rest of the night hugging her tight and crying. Of course she was grounded. She was very, very grounded. But those adventurers had saved her from the goblins, so being grounded didn’t seem so bad.
Except for the fact that now she was stuck inside watching her mother die.
They assured her that mother was just sick, but Abigail was eight summers old, not stupid. Mom was sick with Ziz Fever, she hadn’t gotten out of bed in two moons. Abigail could see how pale her face was, how tired she always looked. Doctor Jojobo could make the medicine for it, he could cure her, but father said it cost too much.
That’s why she’d gone looking for the book. If she could have gotten it back, then Jojobo would have had to make the medicine for her. Now, if she left the house at all she’d be in huge trouble.
Abigail curled up. She’d wanted to help, but now her father was out working twice as hard to make up for missing two suns looking for her. She’d just made things worse.
On the Silver Bazaar docks...
“Your daughter is a thief, Gregory.†Though the woman stood several fulms shorter than him, Gregory felt small as she berated him. After suns of searching for his daughter he just didn’t have the energy to fight. Rarali paced, stubby legs taking her a surprising distance with each step, slightly worn silk sashes swaying in the breeze as she stormed about the docks, wooden planks creaking underneath her. “I know it. You now it. Everybody knows it. And the timing of this little escapade of hers is just a bit too convenient for my tastes.â€
Gregory sighed and attempted to speak, but Rarali cut him off.
“No! No, no you don’t. You listen to me, Grey. You are going to find that ring and you are going to get it back to me. Get your daughter to tell you where she hid it, find it yourself, or hire those good for nothing adventurers to retrieve it. I don’t care. So long as I get my ring back I won’t be calling the Blades down on your house, and don’t you even get me started on that whore you call a wife!â€
Again, Gregory tried to speak, but Rarali was already storming off, keeping a remarkable pace for her size and leaving Gregory on the docks. Several other fishermen were there, tending to lines or mending nets. Not a one of them spoke to him.
An office in Horizon...
“Okay, now sign here. Okay, here. And here. Also here.â€
Ut’mah sighed and dragged the pen across the page, signing his name on the documents provided. A hundred gil here, two hundred there. Every last repair had more paperwork and further expenses. If this kept up, he’d barely break even on this venture.
“Very good, sir,†the customs official said as she blotted the ink dry and stacked the papers into a folder. She was a small hyur woman with two very large men standing by as guards, spectacles down on the tip of her nose. “We’ll just get these forms sent off in triplicate, and we’ll have an answer in a few suns.â€
“A few suns!?†Ut’mah flinched back, the fur of his tail standing on end. “What could possibly take a few suns? I’ve been stuck here for a sennight already. I’m bleeding gil!â€
“I understand, sir,†the woman said with a practiced, and frustrating, air of calm. “Couriers will need a chance to take these papers back to the home office, and then it’s just a matter of waiting for their reply. There is, unfortunately, an order to these things and requests are filed as they are received.â€
“Right, right, I know. But a lot of these deliveries are very important. My livelihood depends on them arriving within a reasonable rate of time.â€
“Perhaps I could interest you in rush processing?â€
“How much...?â€
The edge of Horizon...
Ut’lahni was back with the carts, murmuring into a linkpearl when he returned. When she saw him approach, she tapped the pearl and shifted down from her seat to walk over to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.
“Three more suns, lovely,†Ut’mah sighed, and placed his hands on her hips. She nodded and leaned in, nuzzling his neck and murmuring softly.
“I know, lovely, I know. But once we make it to Ul’dah I’ll be able to make it all back and more. This is just the beginning of my empire.†Ut’mah chuckled. “Soon, you’ll have plenty of women to fight with for my attention, but you’ll always be my favorite.â€
Abigail Grey sat on a small wooden stool beside her mother’s bed. Her father had yelled at her for running off like that, then spent the rest of the night hugging her tight and crying. Of course she was grounded. She was very, very grounded. But those adventurers had saved her from the goblins, so being grounded didn’t seem so bad.
Except for the fact that now she was stuck inside watching her mother die.
They assured her that mother was just sick, but Abigail was eight summers old, not stupid. Mom was sick with Ziz Fever, she hadn’t gotten out of bed in two moons. Abigail could see how pale her face was, how tired she always looked. Doctor Jojobo could make the medicine for it, he could cure her, but father said it cost too much.
That’s why she’d gone looking for the book. If she could have gotten it back, then Jojobo would have had to make the medicine for her. Now, if she left the house at all she’d be in huge trouble.
Abigail curled up. She’d wanted to help, but now her father was out working twice as hard to make up for missing two suns looking for her. She’d just made things worse.
On the Silver Bazaar docks...
“Your daughter is a thief, Gregory.†Though the woman stood several fulms shorter than him, Gregory felt small as she berated him. After suns of searching for his daughter he just didn’t have the energy to fight. Rarali paced, stubby legs taking her a surprising distance with each step, slightly worn silk sashes swaying in the breeze as she stormed about the docks, wooden planks creaking underneath her. “I know it. You now it. Everybody knows it. And the timing of this little escapade of hers is just a bit too convenient for my tastes.â€
Gregory sighed and attempted to speak, but Rarali cut him off.
“No! No, no you don’t. You listen to me, Grey. You are going to find that ring and you are going to get it back to me. Get your daughter to tell you where she hid it, find it yourself, or hire those good for nothing adventurers to retrieve it. I don’t care. So long as I get my ring back I won’t be calling the Blades down on your house, and don’t you even get me started on that whore you call a wife!â€
Again, Gregory tried to speak, but Rarali was already storming off, keeping a remarkable pace for her size and leaving Gregory on the docks. Several other fishermen were there, tending to lines or mending nets. Not a one of them spoke to him.
An office in Horizon...
“Okay, now sign here. Okay, here. And here. Also here.â€
Ut’mah sighed and dragged the pen across the page, signing his name on the documents provided. A hundred gil here, two hundred there. Every last repair had more paperwork and further expenses. If this kept up, he’d barely break even on this venture.
“Very good, sir,†the customs official said as she blotted the ink dry and stacked the papers into a folder. She was a small hyur woman with two very large men standing by as guards, spectacles down on the tip of her nose. “We’ll just get these forms sent off in triplicate, and we’ll have an answer in a few suns.â€
“A few suns!?†Ut’mah flinched back, the fur of his tail standing on end. “What could possibly take a few suns? I’ve been stuck here for a sennight already. I’m bleeding gil!â€
“I understand, sir,†the woman said with a practiced, and frustrating, air of calm. “Couriers will need a chance to take these papers back to the home office, and then it’s just a matter of waiting for their reply. There is, unfortunately, an order to these things and requests are filed as they are received.â€
“Right, right, I know. But a lot of these deliveries are very important. My livelihood depends on them arriving within a reasonable rate of time.â€
“Perhaps I could interest you in rush processing?â€
“How much...?â€
The edge of Horizon...
Ut’lahni was back with the carts, murmuring into a linkpearl when he returned. When she saw him approach, she tapped the pearl and shifted down from her seat to walk over to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.
“Three more suns, lovely,†Ut’mah sighed, and placed his hands on her hips. She nodded and leaned in, nuzzling his neck and murmuring softly.
“I know, lovely, I know. But once we make it to Ul’dah I’ll be able to make it all back and more. This is just the beginning of my empire.†Ut’mah chuckled. “Soon, you’ll have plenty of women to fight with for my attention, but you’ll always be my favorite.â€
