The Blue Pearl

This was the first time she would actually meet Ava. Nervousness filled her heart into erratic beats, her palms refused to dry and throat to keep moist. A legend in Sharak"s history, someone who was asked to be the Blue Anchor before Pearl but refused. A master sorcerer, one of the strongest and the most experienced. They said she had been there from the founding of the guild, walked shoulder to shoulder with the original Anchors.

Nina sighed, still not ready for the meeting.

Ava was almost upon her, just around the corner. Nina paused and turned and took deep breaths to steel herself. The old woman looked at her with hard eyes, but with no strong emotion behind her. Nina guessed it was Ava"s default expression.

"So, you... are the one? The Eye?" She asked and took a quick glance around.

"Y-yes Lady Ava. I am Nina, for this mission." She bowed only to see an outstretched and gloved hand below her face. Looking up she saw glanced at Ava and hesitantly shook took her hand and shook it.

"I am not your superior." Ava said as she took her hand back. "You are alone... so your partner is-"

"-Dead." Nina finished for Ava, as the bitter memory came rushing to her. "First day, he went with the villagers to fight, and ended up saving most while..." she sighed.

"Weren"t your orders to always run and stay safe?"

She asked and Nina nodded.

"So you ran and he... disobeyed a direct order and fought." Listening to her, Nina didn"t know which way Ava was thinking, happy at her partner"s selfless sacrifice or angry, or was it at Nina"s obedience or cowardice? She felt her nervousness return again, and felt her upper back poked by thousand hot needle points.

Ava paused just for a moment in thought and then seemed to dismiss it with a sway of her hand "I am here on Aristeros"s... request. He already suspected about your partner"s fate. You are to return as soon as possible."

"But my quest was-" Nina protested weakly, knowing already that it was a failure. Which Ava also realized.

"-Doesn"t matter anymore. You are not allowed to perform solo. One of your vows, wasn"t it?" The way she asked, Nina wondered if pearl"s Liaisons followed the same rule. She nodded which seemed redundant as Ava already knew the answer.

Her other vow was to not discuss the details of her quest, but if Ava asked her now about it, would she be able to refuse? She didn"t know and it scared her. Breaking a vow was punished, the mark all the golden tower agents-Aristeros"s Eyes wore on their body were their failsafe. It would usually render them mute or so she had heard. But Nina was marked by Vilon, one of Aristeros"s second. And his mark was far more...lethal.

"Seeing as we are from different towers, you don"t have to answer everything I ask. Just give me what you can without breaking your vow."

Nina sighed in relief.

"It would be an honor my lady." Ava made a face, clearly not happy being addressed like that but at this point had given up on protesting.
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"The monster-" she was stopped by Ava"s raised palm.

"No, I don"t care about the monster, tell me about the village, the priest and... Tristan."

The last name surprised and scared her, in all her months at no point did the boy came as anyone important. If Ava were to know what she did to him... Did she already know? She didn"t think so, she had confidence in her abilities to manipulate memory.

"Tristan? Why Tristan?" She asked in a high pitched shocked tone that quickly regretted as soon as it came out. But other than a raised eyebrow, Ava didn"t seem much bothered.

"You know what ails the village, yes?" She asked and Nina nodded. It was an ancient curse, though not sure which one, she knew it was vastly powerful.

"And why you are not inflicted." Nina nodded at Ava"s statement again, agents were protected from cruses and other such hexes, anything subtle and indirect. "Did you know that Tristan is also untouched by it?"

Ava paused and gave her some time to think it over which was good because she did need some.

How could have Tristan be unaffected by the cruse?

It didn"t make sense and Nina could think of anything except for... the priest, Nowsen.

"When I first saw him I was surprised to see him unaffected. Happy even, thinking this time it might be different after all, may be it was a weaker beast." Ava sighed. "Then I saw you three tied up and felt the others with as bad as the curse could go. He said he had a priest teaching him magic." Nina looked up shocked, she hadn"t known that. Ava nodded, "He is not very skilled, neither have enough reserve to even burn a proper fire, but still magic this far out in the world is surprising." Nina couldn"t help but agree. "And now he tells me his master took the curse from him. I want to know more about this master of his. Who apparently, despite being bedridden until recently is missing. How convenient."

Nina was beginning to see where it was going when Ava spoke again, "He made this ward around the temple, strongest I have ever seen that could easily keep the monster away. Thought to be impossible to do it properly and here I see the marvel at its finest."

Ava took a deep breath and tucked a few pale loose strands behind her ear. Nina waited silently for her turn to speak.

"Tristan is that man"s protégé. I want to know what made him so special."

Ava paused again, staring at her with her arms crossed under her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Finally it seemed she was done.

Nina cleared her throat before starting.

"Tristan was... a normal boy. A loner and used to go the temple whenever he could. Because of the quest I was not paying attention to him or anyone really..." she said, feeling a bit ashamed though she had no reason to feel so. "But there had been no magic in the village. I kept an eye on the temple and never felt anything. Only one remotely close was Nicola but she only did intermediate Alchemy."

"Nicola..." Ava mulled, interrupting her speech, thankfully she was about finished. "She from the morning, tell me about her."

"She is "vile"." Nina answered without even thinking and Ava raised an eyebrow. Nina blushed. "Ah!"

"Has she always been? Or was it only after the monster? And was she the only one "vile " here?"

Ava asked with something in her voice that Nina couldn"t quite grasp. She thought about what the older woman had said and if there was any truth to it.

"I don"t know if Nicola was always... but it made clear after the monster. The others... I thought they were just afraid and desperate, acting on impulse... yes they were "vile" too."

"It is that but not just." Ava sighed, "Endahar curse brings out the worst in people, those base and repressed desires, darker the better. One might like a beautiful woman, but "like" and just that, maybe there are some nightly dreams and imaginations but nothing more. But with this curse... And I saw she is a very beautiful woman. So..."

Nina looked down, she saw what Ava was talking about. It was true too, she had seen the meant force themselves on Nicola quite a few times. The fact that the woman never acted upon it and always went as if nothing had happened was one of the reasons everyone hated her so much. Two woman before her had decided it was better to die than be raped every other day by their neighbors just a few week ago.

"But she-"

"Also had her dark desires. I get it. Don"t hold against them what they did here."

Easy for you to say.

She thought but didn"t quite say it. Mostly because she knew Ava had been right.

"So this priest..." Ava changed the subject.

"Never seen him before but after the monster. He called us here, made room for everyone, helped where he could, day and night. What he did, I don"t think he was the one who set the monster here." She snuck a glance at Ava who was looking at the wall, thinking.

"Hmm... I am just looking at the possibilities. There is a gate to Endahar at the peak where the monster set its base."

"WHAT?!" Nina shouted, something like this...

"No it was more like a valve. From here to there and not the other way. Don"t think its Aya either, she would just..." she paused and frowned. "Let"s not go there. It has already been taken care of." And Nina agreed, talking about a demiG.o.ddess only made things more complicated, if she of all things wanted to destroy the village, then there wasn"t anything that could be done.

"I think the monster did it. Dug in a hole through s.p.a.ce to Endahar." Ava shrugged helplessly as if surprised at her own ridiculous statement. "The question is how "did" it come here in the first place." Ava eyed her critically, the question evident in them but was not uttered.

Did it have anything to do with her quest?

Was Ava"s silent question. Nina didn"t think so, they were there following the trail of a missing Hero. Had nothing to do with Endahar or their links. She shook her head and Ava frowned. She believed her but in turn only got more questions in mind.

"Now the priest, where did he go?"

Nina kicked the ground under her, slid rock, reaching far inside the mountain, tunnels, and reaching deep and far. She didn"t reach the end of them, it felt like the whole mountain was laced with them. But she did feel far enough distance. Everyone"s weight on the rocks. Most in the main hall, some in the corridors, and personal chambers, it helped that most beds inside were carved rocks instead of wood. She felt two running through the tunnels, Tristan and Olean. No one else.

"Unless he is floating, He is not here. The priest I mean." Nina answered with a breathy sigh as she released her magic.

"Huh! An elemental. And a strong one too." Ava praised her. If it was any other time she would have squealed and jumped and hugged whoever was in front of her. But for now she just made do with the wide grin that she hid looking at the floor.

"He disappeared out of his bed. One of the strongest Wizard by his feat that I have seen so far. I am completely certain he was not moved but he moved himself."

"But he was in the death"s door, barely able to move his hand how can he... I don"t see how?"

"That is the question, isn"t it?" Ava answered to Nina"s question with another and smirked.