Things had calmed down for Rance in the weeks since he’d started working at VlamVloed. Oh, there had been plenty of excitement, too, what with the scattered trips to the coasts of Torchline to follow rumors, but that was more to appease his wandering feel and curiosity than because he wanted the danger and uncertainty.
He was finally starting to get a feel for the people who lived in that area, at least, both from the times when it was his turn to bar-tend and from walking the streets. It was like a blending of both the human and Hidden cultures he’d left behind, all with a shadow of old terror and the light of still new freedom. He could trade for clothes and food from a craftsman on the street, but watch them use magic or change shape to fill his request. Utterly alien, but not in a bad way. He’d already filled the journal he’d brought with him to Caido and had purchased another, all for recording the bits of stories he heard in the streets, in the bar, or from his own experiences. Later, some of them might find their way into the Loreseekers’ archives, but many were just fragments that helped Rance slowly understand the world he’d been pulled into.
It was Rance’s turn at the bar when the blonde woman entered, and dropped down in a seat, looking a bit lost in thought. She was staring at vial of liquid – or something like it – which was curious in and of itself. The two packs slung over her shoulders were a bit less unusual, considering how often people seemed to travel to and from the Hollowed Grounds, but brought their own flavor of questions to mind.
The easiest question first, however. “Hey,” he greeted, stepping to her end of the bar. “What can I get ya?”
He was finally starting to get a feel for the people who lived in that area, at least, both from the times when it was his turn to bar-tend and from walking the streets. It was like a blending of both the human and Hidden cultures he’d left behind, all with a shadow of old terror and the light of still new freedom. He could trade for clothes and food from a craftsman on the street, but watch them use magic or change shape to fill his request. Utterly alien, but not in a bad way. He’d already filled the journal he’d brought with him to Caido and had purchased another, all for recording the bits of stories he heard in the streets, in the bar, or from his own experiences. Later, some of them might find their way into the Loreseekers’ archives, but many were just fragments that helped Rance slowly understand the world he’d been pulled into.
It was Rance’s turn at the bar when the blonde woman entered, and dropped down in a seat, looking a bit lost in thought. She was staring at vial of liquid – or something like it – which was curious in and of itself. The two packs slung over her shoulders were a bit less unusual, considering how often people seemed to travel to and from the Hollowed Grounds, but brought their own flavor of questions to mind.
The easiest question first, however. “Hey,” he greeted, stepping to her end of the bar. “What can I get ya?”
