Chronicles of Aquilae: The Victorian incursion [Book 1]

Chapter One, The Arrow of Paris

A simple note written on a tattered paper fell on the table, attracting the sight of the Aquilae that was taking the last sips of a Stout right after sunset in a gloomy afternoon at Victorian London.

"May I take you home with me tonight?"

Wallace Amery looked up right away. A graceful and carefree young woman with black hair that fell in messy curls to her lower back smiled at him while she refilled someone else's glass with beer at the nearest table. The bright green dress worn by her seemed very peculiar for him, because it was not a color he used to see in such a rainy and somber city.

They looked at each other as he held the note with two fingers when she got closer to him.

"I believe this is yours, miss", Wallace said.
"Now it belongs to you, mister Amery", she replied. "Can you please answer the question?"

He took a deep breath. Many unusual requests were attended by him since he was initiated in the Guild, and some of them were certainly surpassed in difficulty by the one written in that piece of paper, appealing to what he believed it would happen if he left the pub with that lady.

"I can assume without any fear of being wrong that the woman who got up from this table minutes ago is the flamboyant Erika Strauss. I suppose her visit to England has been extended unexpectedly", the girl kept talking. She had a quite strong accent and it was very notorious that English wasn't her mother language.
"Why do you know her?", he asked, a little confused after realizing the girl knew the identity of his Aquilae partner.
"It does not matter, sir. I should have asked this favor to her, but I believe she was in a bit of a haste", she said.
"Perhaps I can ask her to ret...", he tried to say.
"I need you, Wallace Amery", she interrupted. "There is no point in discussing it. Also, I cannot do what I want with you if we are surrounded by so many people. What will your answer be?"

The young man felt a slight pulse against his chest, so he took a glance under his coat before replying. The feather engraved on his pocket watch was scarcely glowing, and that made him understand he would make a good decision if he accepted, so he nodded despite his bafflement. Pleased, the girl smiled and made a hand gesture to ask him to walk with her at the bar. She put a handful of coins on it, causing a jingle that alerted her coworker.

"This one is on the house, Clarence", she addressed the man behind the counter. "I am going home with this fine gentleman and I needed to set the mood."

Clarence didn't reply, he only chuckled, and Wallace couldn't ignore that gesture. The girl took his arm firmly and they both left the pub. They walked a couple of blocks until they reached a small house with a gray door and windows covered by a black burlap. A slight smell of dry flowers filled the place while the Aquilae took a quick look in search for suspicious things, but he didn't find anything worth of a warning. However, it still seemed disturbing for him and he questioned himself for allowing a complete stranger to carry him away without a convincing explanation. He swiftly secured an escape route, just in case.