The Dreamer and the Marked

Chapter Three - Part Two

The ambassadors were released after another couple of hours, and Javis got back on the airship and left Arkaven. He ordered a bottle of spirits for the flight home and poured what he could of it into his flask. He sat back with the remainder in hand and heaved a sigh. Removing his glasses, he rested his face in his hand.

He didn't know why he expected things to go any differently today. Phar may have said he would look into the situation in the clans, but Javis knew he wouldn't. He never did. Maybe, if someone else had reported in place of Javis, Phar would have been more inclined to care. Javis couldn't blame him, though. The Minister had as much reason as the drād to hate humanity.

The only hope Javis had was that his contractor would get back to him. Even then, there was no guarantee the evidence would be what the Board wanted. Then again, knowing Javis' luck, his contractor probably took the money and ran.

He knocked back the rest of the bottle and ordered another.

It was late in the evening when he entered the small house tucked deep within the birch forest on the outskirts of Kerevel Tul. He sighed in relief. Home at last.

Javis fell into an armchair next to a wood stove and melted into its soft cushions. He closed his eyes. He never minded being away, but there was something comforting about having a place to return to when he wasn't in the clans.

Of course, it wasn't really his house. When he first moved in, he thought it had been abandoned, only to find it was already inhabited by a large family of brownies. They let him stay on the condition that he left one of the rooms upstairs for them and that he bought them food when he was around. He would need to go to the city to take care of that in the morning, needing to resupply food for himself as well since he wouldn't be returning to the clans for a month or two. But for now, he was going to let himself have a much-needed rest.

He didn't know what time during the night he brought himself up to bed, but when he awoke early the next morning, he fell right back into his routine. He stumbled blindly down the dark stairwell and made his way to the kitchen. He lit a dim lantern and heated a pot of tea, which he drank seated at his messy desk upstairs in his study. He was in no hurry, so he sketched in his leather journal until his tea grew cold.

He dressed, then stopped in front of the bathroom mirror to try to tame his curly, chin-length hair. He started at the sight of the deformed and sightless atrocity that was his right eye. Usually, he had it disguised with a glamor, but he must have accidentally let the magic fall while he slept.

He hated the sight of the old injury. It was a reminder of his mistakes from his youth. He cast a glamor again so that the eye matched the beautiful electric blue of his left one.

The sky began to lighten as he left for Kerevel Tul. He walked there, as he always did; the forest too dense for vehicles to get through. Javis didn't mind the long walk though. The forest put him at ease.

By the time he reached the city, street vendors were setting up for the day market. He took advantage of the hour and had all of his shopping done by the time the streets woke up. He stopped at a deli for breakfast.

Kerevel Tul was a peaceful city. It was technically not a part of Erothel, but neutral territory. This lent itself well to the attitudes of people around. For the most part, its inhabitants welcomed all who lived there, even nalingur to some extent. The culture was one of the main reasons why Javis moved back there. The other reason was for the Citadel.

One part observatory and one part meeting hall for the members of the High Council—Arai's collective leaders—the Citadel was a grand, stone building that stood watch over the city on a hill. Scholars, students of astronomy, philosophers, and others frequently gathered there to study and speak their theories. Its size was only rivaled by the Kerevel in the center of the city. Javis visited the Citadel every chance he could, as it was also home to Kerevel Tul's library.