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Part I - Neethrel
Denobi slipped quietly through the door and paused. Her
sharp ears picked up the sound of light breathing and
her dark brown eyes scanned the room for the source. It
sounded like the breathing of a small person, a servant
boy perhaps. But, the breathing was deep and what ever
it was, it was defiantly asleep.
Silently she hurried over to the bar counter and
crouched in its shadow. The sound was louder there.
Cautiously, she crawled to the end of the counter and
peered around it. A bone lay on the ground with large
teeth marks in it. A watch dog, Denobi thought. She
moved closer to get a better look. To her surprise it
was not a dog. Lying asleep in the moonlight was a pale
white Saphera, one of the rare cats from the far islands
of Menther. She felt an urge to pet the beautiful beast
but, knew it would be foolish. She shook off the feeling
and drew away. Saphera’s are extremely rare and
expensive, she considered as she slipped silently across
the room to the cellar door, if they can afford a pet
like that, surely they won’t miss a few pounds of meat.
Leaving the door open behind her, Denobi crept carefully
down the stairs. All her life she had spent hiding and
learning to move quietly and she knew well how to test
each step before using it. A little noise could ruin
everything. Denobi was the best at what she did now that
Demon was gone. Though few actually knew of Demon’s
death and it would be a long time before his ghost too
would die. She had made sure to give him credit for a
few of her latest jobs so that people would believe he
was still at work. But then, she had a reputation of her
own as well and, of course, that meant she had to keep
moving to stay alive. So far, she had yet to see the
inside of a prison.
When she reached the soft earth floor of the cellar she
paused again, all senses probing the darkness. When she
was satisfied, she made her way carefully to the back of
the cellar. Her trained eyes could just make out the
shelves in the darkness. They were high and well
stocked. Denobi’s stomach growled in anticipation and
she immediately begin filling her bag. There were
several kegs most likely filled with beer sitting nearby
and Denobi considered taking some of that as well.
Suddenly the groan of old wood sounded like an explosion
in the silence. Denobi’s heart jumped to her throat and
she froze, crouched next to a barrel. She peered through
the darkness. Moon light from the room above flooded the
top of the stairs but, nothing moved. Denobi waited
still and silent. She knew from experience that patience
for a thief is priceless. A thief who could stay hidden
and silent long enough could wait out the best of bounty
hunters. So it was, hours later after the moon had long
disappeared and a different kind of light begin to show
through the upstairs doorway, she finally decided it was
safe to move. The sound might have been just the effect
of old wood warping but, the faster she got out of there
the easier she’d feel. She stood gingerly and stretched
her cramped muscles hoping none of the occupants of the
house were early risers. She ignored the beer and made
her way to the stairs.
Her foot had barely touched the first one when she saw
the shadow to her right move.
“Hullo!” said a light merry voice. Denobi’s body reacted
automatically and she darted for the doorway. The shadow
was quicker and a hand closed around her wrist causing
her to stop short of the fourth stair. She tripped and
landed uncomfortably on her side. She bit her lip to
keep from crying out and twisted around, whipping out
her knife to strike at the shadow. It had formed into an
impossibly large shape that towered over her. She
couldn’t see enough to make out were to aim so she
jabbed wildly. The knife made contact and Denobi heard a
cry of pain but, the grip on her wrist was not weakened.
Suddenly, she was flipped over with her arm twisted
behind her. She felt a knee in her back then a sharp
pain on the side of her head. Her body went numb. At the
edge of her vision she could see the first rays of
sunlight through the open cellar door. Then everything
went black.
***
When Denobi was born Madam Tetra, spat on her head and
cursed her.
“You, child, will die before nightfall or live forever
in pain. May the gods have pity on you and grant you
death.”
Than the woman handed the child tenderly to its father
and begin to prepare the dead body that had been the
child’s mother.
Denobi did not die that night and the next day Madam
Tetra let Andrea begin feeding her goat’s milk. The fact
that the child was a female was bad luck enough but, a
female in Sinner’s Village was even worse. In fact, most
girls in her situation usually ended up becoming one of
Madam Tetra’s whores or else killed themselves.
Fortunately, her father had plans for her and plenty of
power to make them work. Madame Tetra was well known for
her ability to keep valuable secretes and it helped that
she was in love with the girl’s father.
“Although, if she grows to look anything like her mother
I’d have easily made her The Favorite,” Madam Tetra had
said regretfully.
Andrea, the mother’s hand maid, was devoted to the
family and was more than willing to do whatever it took
to keep Denobi out of Madam Tetra’s business.
The priest, once he saw her father’s gold, was more than
happy to do his work with no questions asked.
Then the feast was held in the village square to
celebrate the Birth of Demon’s son, Demon presented
Edenobi. He simply used the male version of her name
which meant ‘Secret’ in the ancient language. From there
on out, her Father raised her in all manners like a son
while Andrea quietly and secretly taught her what only a
woman could
Demon loved his daughter with all his heart and devoted
himself to training her to fight and survive in world
ruled by the purebloods.
“Some day,” he would often say, “You will not be able to
hide what you are. You will be discovered and I will no
longer be able to protect you. You will have to prove
yourself against many and if you are skilled enough you
will earn respect among the outlaws and rule the forests
of Ruen”
Denobi would always reply though, “I don’t want to
forests. I want the city. I don’t want the respect of
half bloods only. I want all elves and their kin alike
to know my name and cower.”
Perhaps Demon thought she only jested but, for Denobi it
was a promise.
Ever since the day when she had been four and Andrea had
taken her to the city of Neetherel, the capitol of Eron
Efkel, wearing a scarf to hide her ears. She had been
enchanted by the people and their lives. They talked
openly with one another and did not greet each other
with blades drawn. The woman wore elegant dresses and
did not cut their hair short. She had caught sight of
the towering walls of High Castle where the king lived
and held court. She had disobeyed Andrea and gone right
up to the gates to watch the soldiers of the king
preparing to go to the battles, their silver armor
decorated with pearl shinning in the sun. The City had
swept her away with its beauty and splendor and she had
fallen in love with it. She swore to herself she would
one day live like the pure-bloods and they would know
her as their better.
Her father had tried very hard over time to break her of
that desire, reminding her of the hatred of half-bloods
that nearly all pure bloods harbored. But Denobi
persisted. She had heard tales of half-bloods who had
used their fighting skills to gain the kings favor and
entrance into his army. They where given special swords
with the king’s seal and allowed to live in the cities.
So Denobi trained every day with that one goal in mind.
The War that had been waging for so many years was
started between the Elf king, Dendron, and a Human king,
called Esgard, though; its roots begin two thousand
years ago when the Humans had appeared in the land where
the elves had always lived. They were seen as a much
inferior people and left more of less to them selves
because they had little to offer the elves. However, the
humans turned out to be, tough short lived, and highly
reproductive. In a short time the human population
outnumbered the Elf population and spread like a fire
throughout the land. Eventually, the lves could no
longer ignore them. Many of the elves accepted this
change by immersing themselves in the human culture and
intermarrying until their children portrayed only the
slightest elf characteristics. The rest of the elves
simply left the continent and took over the eastern
islands which became the kingdom of Eron Efkel, which
meant in the ancient language ‘Last Haven’. But, even
there they found no solstice.
During the course of the war half-breeds begin to appear
on the islands and great hatred towards them developed
among the elves simply because they stood for their
greatest fear, loss of the pure blooded race. Eventually
the King had made a set of laws called the Purity laws.
These laws made it unlawful for those of human decent to
own land, to buy or sell, and/or to marry a Pure-blood.
The punishment for breaking any of these laws was of
course death.
So it was that because Denobi had been born of an Elf
mother and Half-blooded Father she was born into
lawlessness.
Denobi knew little of her mother, Rose. Demon had almost
never spoken of her except to say that she was of the
purest elf breed and she had loved Demon despite the
blood in his veins. Who her family was and where she had
lived Denobi would never know because her father would
say no more.
Demon himself was the son of a human soldier and an Elf
woman named Rionari. They had met on the island Lidora
where Esgard’s army had won ground. He didn’t know much
about his father because his mother had been paid to
sleep with the man for one night and had never seen him
again. Rionari refused to kill the child though she had
known what it meant if she let it live. Instead she had
raised Demon in Gora, one of the southern islands.
However, when folk begin to notice the boy’s human
characteristics she had been forced to leave. Rionari
traveled to Ruen where the vast forests allowed most
half-breeds to hide from the pure bloods, and there she
left him at the age of ten to the care of others of his
kind. There he learned anything and everything the
outlaws could teach him and became a master short blade
fighter, a remarkable blade craftsman, a legendary thief
and Lord of the half-bloods. All this he had left to
Denobi when the coughing disease took him and he died in
the year of his seventieth winter.
As was required by the outlaws of Ruen, Denobi was
called upon to pass the seven trials and prove that she
would take her fathers place. Much to the satisfaction
of the population of Ruen, who had come to know and
respect their leader’s “son”, Denobi passed the trials
with little trouble. Though she was young and strong
willed the outlaws trusted her to rule as fairly her
father had.
When the expected day arrived on which Denobi was to be
officially recognized as Lord of Ruen the greatest
warriors from all the Islands came to pay their
respects. Many brought rare gifts and females dressed in
their best prepared to start working on the young Lord
as soon as possible in order to have a good chance at
becoming his bride. But Denobi was nowhere to be found.
Only Andrea may have guessed where Demon’s heir had
gone. After all, she had often watched Denobi staring
after the trade ships that sailed towards Neetherel.
***
Denobi woke to high pitch screeching and a dull pain on
the side of her head. She tried to open her eyes and
winced at the sudden light. She shut her eyes against
the pain and listened for familiar sounds. Over head she
could hear muffled voices and foot falls and something
nearby moved about her. Obviously, she was not in the
old barn as she should have been. She tried remember why
but failed to gather her thoughts around the pounding
ache in her head. Denobi became aware that the
screeching noise was coming from nearby. Slowly, she
opened her eyes, squinting to adjust for the light. For
an instant she simply stared at the shrunken face that
grinned back at her. Then she screamed.
Upstairs there was a thump and all was silent. The
shrunken face disappeared from her vision. Denobi waited
for her heart beat to return to normal then looked
around. The shelves stacked with food and the barrels of
beer brought back flashes of memory. She had come here
to find some food. That as much as she could recall. She
wondered why she was still here and why no had come
running when she screamed. Something wasn’t right.
Denobi tried to feel the side of her head but, she
couldn’t move her arms. She was bound. Suddenly, the
rest of the night’s encounter came flooding back.
Crow’s curses, she thought and mentally scolded herself
for being so careless. She couldn’t believe she had been
so easily caught.
She shifted as much as she could as she tried to get an
idea of her situation. She was tied to the main support
which stood in very middle of the cellar. The door to
the upper room had been shut and to her left sunlight
poured in from a slanted window. The window cover leaned
against the wall directly under it and told her why the
room had not been so well lit the night before. She
tested the cords around her wrist and determined that
they were strong but tied just slightly too loose.
Yes! Denobi nearly laughed out loud in relief. She
hurried to slip the cords from her wrists. Once she was
free the first thing she did was check for her knife. It
was gone. She groaned, realizing that she would probably
never see it again. It would bee the highest price she
would pay for her clumsiness, unless she didn’t get out
here soon. Then, the knife would probably be the least
of her worries. She hurried over to the window and
peered out. She could see that it led to an alley behind
the tavern. Running her hand along the edges she
searched for a latch that would open the window from
inside. She found nothing.
The screeching noise had begun again, behind her now, as
she stood at the window. She tucked a strand of silky
black hair behind her barely pointed ear and glanced
around to find out where it was coming from. A movement
in the corner of the room caught her eye. Stepping away
from the window she could make out what seemed to be a
dark cat hunched over something it was eating. As she
watched it, the thing suddenly looked up at her and sat
upright. To her surprise she was looking at the same
shrunken face she had seen earlier.
She had thought before that it was just her imagination
but now, she could see that it was some kind of small
furry animal she didn’t recognize. Its ears were round
like a human’s but, covered in fur and its face also,
remarkably human, appeared to small for the rest of its
features. Its tail, long, like a cat’s, curled and
writhed back and forth. As Denobi watched, it dropped
its food and let out another screech.
Startled by the sound Denobi realized that someone was
bound to hear it and could be down here at any moment.
She had to escape. She began to search for anything that
might be useful.
In the daylight the cellar appeared much bigger. Shelves
lining three of the walls were filled with stores of
food. The third wall under the window was lined with
kegs of beer. As she stared at the beer, Denobi recalled
having once seen beer tapped.
That’s it. She thought
She searched the shelves until she found what she was
looking for. On one of the shelves a hammer and tap lay
side by side. She grabbed the hammer and hurried over to
the window.
All of a sudden she heard the cellar door open.
Denobi let out a silent curse and then, in one decisive
move, darted behind the shelf next to the stairs. There
she held her breath and listened. She heard the door
close again then, slowly, footsteps descended the
stairs. Denobi counted silently. Three, four, five,
six...there was the creak...Seven. The eighth footstep
fell silent on the earth floor. Denobi held her breath
and raised the hammer. The strange creature scampered
across the floor to the stairs.
“Hey, Muckly, where’d our thief go? You didn’t let him
escape did you?
The voice was light and reminded Denobi of laughter.
There was no doubt in her mind that it was the same
voice she had heard last night and she was glad to know
that her disguise had not been discovered by her captor.
As she listened she heard no movement and she began to
hope that he might assume she had already escaped and
leave. But, he did not leave. For a long time she heard
nothing except the monkey’s screams then, quite suddenly
the figure appeared directly in front of her.
“Hello, there!”
Denobi gasped. A giant of an elf stood before her, a
good foot and a half over her five foot six, peering
down and smiling disarmingly. His hair was remarkable
and unlike anything she had ever seen. It stuck out
wildly in every direction, sharp black streaks
highlighted with auburn. His long pointed ears were
pierced, with three earrings each, and his eyes were a
deep blood red. He wore a pair of baggy brown pants with
a broad red belt. His shirt had once been white and hung
loosely from his thin muscular frame. Over that he wore
an old fading black vest. Overall his attire struck
Denobi as somewhat seaman like. To add to the effect the
monkey clung to his shoulder like a large hairy brown
parrot.
Denobi blinked and her mouth opened and shut but,
nothing came out.
“You better stop gaping and come with me, thief.”
The words snapped Denobi out of her astonishment, her
eyes darkened and she gripped the hammer ready to swing
at the strange apparition though she doubted the flimsy
hammer she held would be any good. However the elf took
a cautious step back.
“Now, boy, don’t do anything stupid.”
But Denobi had seen her opening. She darted past the elf
and darted up the stairs. She heard him behind her
whistle but, otherwise he made no move to follow her and
she already had the cellar door open.
Then she stopped short.
She was frozen in place by a pair of large and deadly
gold eyes. The beautiful saphera stood in her path
unmoving. Denobi no longer felt an urge to pet the
beast. Awake now it had become a graceful, but a large
and deadly mass of muscle and teeth. The beast let out a
low growl and Denobi took a step back rinning into the
elf as he came through the cellar door. He took hold of
her arm and Denobi offered no resistance. Her strength
had been drained by the cat’s powerful gaze.
“Don’t worry,” said the elf, “she won’t attack unless I
give the order.”
The trance was broken now but, the elf’s grip was strong
and Denobi knew that escape would be impossible. He led
Denobi trembling away from the cellar door and towards
the bar counter she had used the previous night as
cover. As her heart beat once again returned to normal
she became aware that the room she had entered through
was in fact a tavern dinning room. And there was someone
else too.
Besides, the cat and the giant, another elf sat on a
stool nearby looking slightly concerned. His appearance
was not quite as startling as the giants. He had bright
red hair that fell in soft waves to his shoulders and
light brown eyes that appeared almost yellow. His
clothing consisted of a long tunic like shirt without
sleeves, over long pants with trains on each leg and a
beaded belt about his waist.
As they reached the bar the red-headed elf nodded and
spoke in a strange accent with rolling r’s.
“Aye now, Kid, Ah thought we agreed to be decent ‘bout
this.”
Denobi thought at first he had spoken to her but then
the tall elf answered.
“Oh? I thought I was being decent,” the tall elf said as
he directed her to a chair behind the counter and pushed
her roughly into it. She looked up at him in anger and
was surprised to see his eyes sparkling with amusement.
This only made her even angrier and her felt the blood
rushing to her face. She hated when people laughed at
her and this elf worst of all. She turned away from him
whishing she had her knife. She’d wipe that smile off
his face in a few second if she only had her weapon.
“I’m Kid Kull O’Neetherel,” He said braking into her
thoughts, “the owner of this tavern. That’s Jed
O’Selterol there,” he nodded to the red head, “You
already know Muckly, the monkey, and Hera, the saphera
you seemed to be much taken with. Now, why don’t you
tell me about yourself.” Denobi glanced from Kid to Jed
and then to the cat. Hera had positioned her self
conveniently between Denobi and the door and begun
chewing on her bone. Denobi couldn’t figure why this elf
would want to know about her…unless he was hopping to
find if her bounty would be worth a trip to the prison
fort. Well she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
“My name is Emil O’Ruen. I’ve just arrived here in
Neether.”
“Ruen …” Said Kid thoughtfully, “That sounds about right
since you’re obviously mixed blood.”
She watched his eyes travel over her as he took in her
appearance, which was, needless to say, less than
desirable. Her long, thick hooded cloak and rough shirt
were seldom washed and sported many layers of stains and
dirt as well as odors she had long ago become used to.
The long pants she wore, though they were much cleaner
than the shirt, had been patched so many times they had
little of the original material left and were stained
with old blood at the knees.
“What brings you all the way out to Neether, Master
Emil? Ruen not to your liking perhaps?”
Denobi knew she couldn’t possibly tell them the truth,
so she quickly made up a story. If she was lucky she
might just turn this whole thing to her advantage.
“My father, sir, he’s a soldier of the King and was
wounded at the battles. He sent for me, sir. My poor
mother used the last of our goods to barter a passage
for me on a ship and I had noth’in left to buy food or a
room for the night. I didn’t know what else to do and
I’ve never thieved before. Honest…sir”
Denobi put on an equally tearful look to go with her
tale but she could tell right away Kid Kull was not
impressed. His eyes had changed to an intensive black
and his grin now had the effect of a wolf baring its
teeth.
“Strike one, boy, I’m afraid patience is not one of my
virtues. If you lie again I will have to punish you.”
His tone pierced her like a knife.
Denobi swallowed hard. What could she do now? Of course
he was going to turn her in no matter what she said but
the King’s guards offer a good price regardless of the
prisoner’s condition.
“Speak up boy!” said Kid Kull sharply.
Denobi knew she couldn’t tell him the truth but, she
didn’t want to be caught lying again. So she said
nothing.
Kid’s seemed to relax and his eyes faded back to their
red color. His hand dropped to his side and he drew a
knife from his belt.
Denobi stiffened and watched him. It wasn’t the knife
her father had given her but for some reason it looked
familiar. Kid played with the knife as he began to talk.
“Well, then, I guess I’ll just tell you what I already
know and you can correct me where I go wrong. First, I
think your name is Endenobi, not Emil. Second, I think
you came here as a stowaway on the trade ship Bretta
that came in a week ago from Ruen. Third, you’ve left
home recently because of the loss of a relative…your
father I think.”
Denobi stood up in surprise. Kid Kull shoved her roughly
back into the chair. The monkey, startled, hopped off
his shoulder and scampered away screaming.
“…A bit jumpy aren’t you?” said Kid Kull slipping the
knife back into his belt.
Denobi broke into a cold sweat and tried to imagine how
she could have given herself away.
“So? Why haven’t you handed me over to the patrol yet?
I’m sure you would enjoy a little extra bounty money.”
Kid’s eyebrow rose and he glanced quickly at Jed. For
the first time Denobi saw the unfaltering smile
disappear and the elf looked almost uncertain.
“A priced one then,” said Jed finally, “Of course ya
probably figured that already.”
Kid Kull looked irritated.
“What are you talking about …” begin Denodi impatiently
then, she stopped short, finally registering it.
“…you don’t,” she realized slowly, “But, then, how did
you guess my name…about my father and about the ship?”
Kid’s eyes sparkled.
“Simple,” He said as if it were, “I happened to see you
last week coming off the ship, which has a very
reputable record and doesn’t often admit half-breeds. Of
course I don’t expect you’ll remember the elf you so
rudely rushed past causing the spoil of a nice new pair
of boots in a nearby mud puddle. As for knowing your
name, I simply overheard you talking to that supposedly
crippled elf on the other side of the docks. You asked
him to send a message back to Ruen”
“But…My father?”
Kid shrugged, “I saw the black band you wore when you
swung that hammer at me. Considering the rumors I’ve
heard about half-breeds I guessed it would be someone
you greatly respect like say…your father, no doubt the
same person who taught you to use the knife.”
Denobi’s eyes caught the movement of his hand to his
side as he spoke. She remembered the feeling of her
knife making a connection last night. She gave him a sly
grin.
“Oh I’m sorry did I hurt you?”
Kid Kull nodded almost respectfully.
“A few inches to the left and you might have been a
murderer too. But I must say you handle a knife fairly
well, boy.”
Denobi resisted the urge to tell Kid Kull that she had
already taken several lives. She simply gave him a half
smile and said coldly, “Not well enough apparently.”
Jed, who had been looking amused, broke in.
“Still I’d say yur well on, considering he’s never
before needed ten stitches and a bottle of brandy.”
Kid Kull turned to give Jed a dark look. Jed grinned
back mischievously and winked at Denobi.
Denobi didn’t like being powerless and her captor’s
smugness was beginning to get on her nerves.
“So why haven’t you handed me over to the guard yet?
Were you planning on killing me yourself?”
Kid Kull studied Denobi with a searching gaze. She
looked away uncomfortably.
"I think it would be a terrible waste.”
Denobi looked up at him in confusion.
"…Of a thief?"
"No…of an elf.”
Denobi thought he sounded almost sincere but, still she
was doubtful.
“A half elf you mean.”
Kid Kull ignored her remark, “To tell you the truth, I’m
dreadfully impressed by your fighting skills."
Denobi was caught off guard by this and didn’t know what
to say.
"So…you're not going to turn me in…?" She asked
guardedly.
His grin broadened, "Of course not. But then, that means
you owe me your life and you must become life-bound to
me until I release you."
Denobi stiffened and glared at the grinning elf. So that
was his game! He just looking for a personal slave, she
thought angrily.
"And what if I refuse?" she said aloud.
Kid Kull shook his head, "I'm not giving you a choice.
Denobi stared at him in shock, and then fear as she
realized that there was nothing she could do.
“You can’t…” She started but, then she stopped. She
tried to think of something, anything, to say that would
put her back in control.
“I can’t what?” He retorted, “You’re a thief, remember?
Who’s going to stop me?"
“I'll run the first chance I get," she said, thinking
quickly.
"You’ll try,” he said with a laugh.
"I won’t work."
"Then I’ll have to punish you."
"I could kill you while you slept."
Kid Kull shook his head again, “If you try I’ll just
have to lock you in the cellar at night."
Denobi growled in frustration.
"Alright then, now that everything’s settled we’ll begin
with getting you cleaned up and ready for work?"
Kid Kull gestured to a door way leading to a hallway,
"To the washroom, boy!"
Denobi felt her blood rising. She just wasn’t about to
give in that easily.
“NO!”
Jed’s expression changed suddenly to Worry. Kid Kull
simply stood pointing to the door way.
“I said, to the washroom.”
Suddenly she didn’t care if he was faster or stronger;
she just wanted to hurt him. In a flash she was on her
feet and was swinging a fist at his face. But he was
faster. He caught her fist inches from his face and in
the same movement twisted it until she cried out. Then,
still holding her fist, he swung her around and shoved
her towards the indicated doorway. Jed jumped out of the
way as Denobi stumbled, with a loud curse, to her knees.
“Kid…”
Kid Kull ignored the other elf.
"No cursing in my tavern, boy!"
Denobi was blind with anger and she didn’t stop to
think. She jumped to her feet and swung a kick at his
knee. Kid Kull was ready. Neatly, he stooped catching
her foot and pulled her off balance causing her to land
on her backside. She screamed more curses at him as he
dragged her struggling down the hall. Jed watched with
apparent concern but did not follow
"Let go of me or I’ll rip your throat out, you damned
son of a pig!"
She tried to get free but Kid Kull kept moving dragging
her towards an open washroom door to their left, halfway
down the hall. He stopped outside the washroom and let
go of her foot. Denobi twisted away and turned over into
a crouch where she was. She wiped the spittle off of her
chin and glared up at Kid Kull who stood beside the
door, arms crossed.
“Go on! You can take a bath or I can give you one.”
But, as soon as he finished his sentence Denobi launched
her self again. This time she aimed lower. But, just as
she put her full weight into it he moved to one side and
she suddenly found her self diving through the air were
he had been a split second ago.
She landed ungracefully inside the washroom, smashing
her head against the wall. Dazed she tuned over to find
the elf standing over her. Suddenly, she realized with
horror what would come next. Kid Kull bent down, grabbed
her shirt with both hands and tore it off of her.
For a moment he simply stared at her as she lay on the
floor with only a thin bandage about her chest.
“Great Swords!” he yelled in horror and stumbled back.
Denobi leapt to her feet and grabbed the shirt pieces
from the horrified elf, looking up in time to see to see
the red head appear beside Kid Kull with a surprised
look
“What’s going on?” he exclaimed. Then he caught sight of
Denobi holding the torn shirt in front of her.
“Oh!” he said with an amused tone and looked up at Kid
Kull. “He’s a she. But, ah suppose ya already knew
that.”
Kid Kull begin pulling at his hair in his agitation.
“How could I have known!” he said pointing an accusing
finger at Denobi, “He- she has the mark of Firstborn
Son.”
Denobi’s hand went automatically to the tattoo on her
arm. Jed glanced at her.
“So she does!” He replied simply. Denobi suddenly felt
ashamed and placed her hand to cover the mark.
“So what if I do!” She said sharply, “It helps aid my
disguise.”
“A bit too well,” put in the Jed with a chuckle.
Kid Kull gave him sharp look and stood up straight.
“You think it’s funny do you? Well then, since you’re so
much more comfortable with the situation at present I
think it best you carry on from here. Just let me know
when she’s ready.”
Kid Kull turned abruptly to leave.
“Now just a minute,” Said Jed anxiously, “Just what am
ah supposed to do with her?” He gestured helplessly at
the half clothed girl.
Kid Kull paused and looked back at him with a smirk.
“Why, give her a bath of course. She’s filthy and I’ll
not have her working in my kitchen smelling like that.
Oh and, you,” He pointed a finger at Denobi, “don’t
think I’ll go easy on you just because your female, You
want to act like a boy I can certainly treat you like
one.”
With that he disappeared around the corner leaving Jed
staring after him in shock. After a moment he glanced
back at Denobi. She glared back.
“Touch me and I’ll rip your arms out” She said studying
the northern elf. She decided that in a hand to hand
fight she could probably best him. He was only a half
foot taller and too heavy and muscular to be very quick.
Jed smiled sheepishly under her fierce scrutiny and
raised his hands in a gesture of peace.
“Now just cool down. ah’m sure he didn’t mean it. At
least ah don’t think he did. He just gets a but sorty
when he’s ruffled…” His voice trailed off as he
scratched his head nervously. Denobi relaxed as she
realized that he wasn’t likely to try anything.
Well, she thought, I can’t just walk out of here like
this.
“Alright,” she said finally, “I’ll bath myself. But,
I’ll need a new shirt.
Jed nodded with visible relief.
"Kid’ll have a clean pair o clothes fur ya. ah’ll be
just a minute and bring ‘em down."
He disappeared down the hall.
As Denobi turned to inspect the washroom the sound of
objects being thrown about came from the dinning room
followed by a loud scream from the monkey. A second
later a blur of brown fur raced through the hall. She
shook her head, perplexed and turned to inspect the room
she was in.
The washroom was small but to her surprise the tub had
not been filled. Beside the tub there was a pump in the
floor that dispensed the water from outside directly
into the tub. She was inspecting the strange mechanism
when Jed returned and handed her the clothes.
“Ya just stop up the drain with that plug there, then ya
can pump as much water as ya need. The water hold’s out
back and gets refilled every day so there should be
plenty. When yur done, just pull the plug and it’ll all
be drained outside.”
With that he left her alone. It took a few practices
round but Denobi got the hang of the pump and managed to
fill the tub with the cold water. She bathed quickly
When she was finished she dressed in the clean clothes
which consisted of a pair of pants, a bit wide and
defiantly much too long, and a shirt that reached to her
knees. Then she tied her own clothes into a bundle and
opened the door slowly to peek outside. Neither the red
head, nor the tall elf, were visible but, she could hear
their voices coming from the dinning room.
She left the washroom and glanced down the hall. At the
end of the hall a winding stairway led up into darkness.
Denobi decided to have a look around
When she reached the second floor she found herself in a
large and sparsely furnished room. It was lit but only
dimly due to the small amount of light able to enter
through the small slits of windows along the top of the
walls. In one corner of the room there was a low wooden
bed with two mattresses, a dreadfully flat pillow, and a
dull brown blanket pushed to one side. At the foot of
the bed there stood a long oak chest. On the other side
of the room was a small iron wood stove. Next to it was
a stack of wood, a large metal chest padlocked shut and
a small wooden box lined with a blanket. A small table
with a chair sat against the far wall. A lamp, and
several papers littered the surface as well as an ink
bottle and several pens.
Denobi approached the desk and examined the papers. Most
contained what appeared to be records of sales,
indicating that the profits were extremely low. Others
papers had lists of foods, many unfamiliar to Denobi.
One paper that caught her eye had a seal on it. It was a
royal seal that Denobi recognized but couldn’t quite
place. She picked up the paper to examine it closer and
found written on the opposite side a short message
without any signature that said simply:
I spoke with Jéson and he has agreed that it is in his
best interest to stay out of my way. If you know what is
in your best interest you will be at summer’s social
court. I think we have all been extremely patient with
you up to this point. However, that patience is
beginning to run a little thin. Please, do not
disappoint your uncle.
The handwriting was clearly a female’s and a high born
one at that. Denobi wondered vaguely what it meant but
do not consider it too hard. She didn’t intend to stay
here longer than she had to and it hardly mattered to
her why Kid Kull would choose to keep a lower class
business when he had friends at court. She replaced the
letter just as she had found it and went to sit on the
bed and consider her situation.
Kid Kull was fast. Trying to best him in hand to hand
would not work. For whatever crazy reason he had come up
with, he was determined to keep her here for a while.
Jed was an unknown factor but, he obviously liked to
avoid a fight as much as Kid Kull liked to provoke one.
The Beast, Hera, was just an animal so Denobi wasn’t too
worried about it. If she could just get her hands on
that the knife Kid Kull had taken from her…
Denobi yawned suddenly, feeling very tired.
I don’t suppose it could hurt, she thought, I’ll just
rest a minuet. It might be awhile before I can make a
run for it. She lay back on the bed and ran various
escape plans through her head but, soon she her eyelids
were drooping and not long after she was fast asleep
Denobi woke to someone shaking her shoulder. She rolled
over and found the red head staring back at her.
“Time to get up, miss.” He said gently, “Kid Kull wants
ta see ya.”
Denobi closed her eyes and rolled back over.
“Tell him to go to hell.”
“Alright then but, he said if ya didn’t come right away
he’d be up here with a bucket o’ cold water.”
Denobi thought it over.
“Damn that bloody fairy!”
She sat up reluctantly and slid out of the bed. Jed
grinned at her in amusement but, as she glared at him
the smile quickly disappeared.
“Best not keep Kid wait’in,” He said heading for the
stairs. Denobi followed.
“I don’t suppose you know what he wants with me?”
“Kid’ll be have’in yah help with the supper Ah think.”
Jed replied as they reached the bottom of the stairs.
Denobi stopped and look at him in surprise.
“Supper? But it was hardly noon when I fell asleep.” She
said uncertainly.
“Was a bit past actually and, ya slept quite a while.”
Denobi followed Jed into the main through the main
dining room. About a dozen elves filled the room
laughing and chatting among themselves as they waited
for their food. Several of them stared at her as she
passed.
But, she told her self, at least none of them were
spitting at her.
They entered the door in the opposite side which opened
into long kitchen. Kid Kull stood next to a rather large
iron stove with several steaming pots on top. He poured,
without a measure, spices and seasonings into each of
the pots and stirred with enthusiasm. As Jed and Denobi
worked their way towards him he turned and looked at
them staring a moment at Denobi then turned back to the
stove.
“The bowls are under the counter!” he said absently and
proceeded to taste the stew in each of the pots.
Jed moved to get the bowls but Denobi remained in place
with arms crossed glaring at Kid Kull. Jed returned and
stacked some bowls next to the stove then went to get
some more. Kid Kull took two of the bowls and handed
them roughly to Denobi, who grabbed them in surprise.
Then, he took two more bowls and filled them with stew.
“Half roal per bowl” He said and disappeared into the
dinning room. Denobi stared at the bowls and
contemplated smashing them on the floor. Jed returned
with the rest of the bowls and set them next to the
first set.
“Careful with those.” he said as if reading her mind,
“Break one, and Kid’ll take more then their worth out of
ya.”
He filled two of the bowls and left. Denobi bit her lip
but, didn’t move. When Kid Kull returned he grabbed two
empty bowls and quickly filled them.
“You better move faster than that, boy. The guests don’t
like to wait. And remember, anything you spill you get
for supper,” Denobi immediately caught his emphasis on
the word boy.
Then he was gone again. Denobi cursed him but turned
reluctantly and begin slowly to fill the first bowl. Jed
returned and grabbed more bowls. He took a second spoon,
filled the bowls and left. Denobi started filling the
second bowl. As she started into the dinning room Kid
Kull passed her with a frown. She ignored him and made
her way carefully with the two bowls to a group of
waiting men at a booth table.
One elf-man thanked her and handed her a roal.
She slipped it into her pocket and turned to see where
Kid Kull and Jed were. Both moved expertly through the
crowded tavern serving the patrons with practiced speed.
I wonder, thought Denobi, they wouldn’t notice… She
glanced at the front door. It wouldn’t take but a second
for her to escape but…she was a bit reluctant to leave
without her knife.
She continued working and, managed to serve two people
for every six that Kid Kull served but it didn’t bother
her in the least. When the demand for food began to die
down Kid told her to start collecting the empty bowls.
And this she did without arguing, along with a few
purses which where easy to hide under her long shirt.
She might need a little money once she got out of here.
Finally, the people stopped asking for food and begin to
gravitate towards the large fire place at back of the
tavern where pipes begin to appear and the working elves
relaxed to smoke and tell stories. Denobi took the last
of the bowls to the kitchen where Jed had begun washing
them. Kid stopped her when she had gotten rid of the
bowls.
“The money you collected goes in the jar over there.”
Denobi made her way over to the jar he had indicated and
dug the collected money out of her pocket, then, with a
quick glance that told her Kid Kull had turned his
attention away, she dumped most of the coins noisily
into the jar and slipped the rest under her shirt to
deposit them in one of the purses she had grabbed
earlier. To her surprise the coins fell with a clatter
to the floor. She turned quickly to glare at Kid Kull.
He turned and gave her a charmingly innocent smile.
“I didn’t figure you for the clumsy sort. Best pick
those up, and make sure you don’t miss any.”
Denobi, red with embarrassment, quickly crouched to pick
up the scattered coins. How could she have missed it?
Just to make sure she checked again. All thee purses she
had lifted were gone. Frustrated, Denobi realized that
some how Kid Kull had spotted her grabbing the purses
and had managed to take them from her with out her
knowing. She remembered having to brush past him to get
to the sink.
“Damn it” she cursed under her breath. She was beginning
to dislike the elf more and more.
When she had collected all the stray coins and dumped
them viciously in the jar, which nearly caused it to tip
over, she turned to Kid Kull ready to grace him with a
few of the less than desirable names that had come to
mind. Before she could open her mouth he shoved a bowl
of steaming hot stew at her and turned away.
“Sit down and have some supper! We’ll talk later.”
Unable to resist the gnawing pain in her stomach she bit
her lip and went out into the dinning room sit down.
What can I do? She asked herself, I can’t touch him, But
I can’t possibly take this much longer either. For now
she could only remedy the fact that she had not eaten
all day. Reluctantly she had to admit that the food was
uncommonly good. She kept that fact to herself though
and after a few minutes Kid Kull took a seat across from
her.
“We’ll have to lay down some ground rules,” he said
staring at Denobi.
she glanced at him but, continued to eat.
“I can’t allow you to be stealing from my guests, and it
won’t benefit either of us much if you spend all your
time trying to escape. You’ll also have to take on your
fair share of the work.”
Denobi dropped her spoon on her empty plate and looked
up at him. She had had quite enough.
“You’ve got to be joking;” She said impatiently,
“There’s absolutely no way you can make me do anything.
The fact is, I would rather you turned me over to the
Guard.”
“And what about the Bounty hunters?”
Denobi flinched but did not look away.
“At least it would be less humiliating than this.” She
said defiantly.
To her surprise a look of pain passed over his sharp
features and he fell silent. Denobi looked away and
begin to fiddle with her bowl. Then, Jed arrived with
two bowls of stew, gave one to Kid Kull and sat down
between the two of them, unaware what had passed.
“Was the dinner to your liking, miss?” he asked.
Denobi didn’t say anything and Jed glanced up looking
from her to Kid Kull.
“Now what?” he asked with a sigh.
When neither spoke Jed sighed again and began to talk in
between bites of stew.
“Well now, it was quite a surprise come’en in this
morn’in to find Kid bleed’in all over the place and Hera
go’in silly round the cellar door…I thought to ma self,
something gone on here last night. So I asked, and Kid
here, he tells me he’s been up last night taken on a rat
he found in his cellar. I says,… ‘my word man, must ‘av
been an awful large rat.’ So he takes me down there…and
shows me this young’en over here, all passed out and
roped to the support. I says,… ‘by God Kid ‘av you gone
insane? Let that poor boy go.’ (See, I hadn’t known then
that it was in fact a young miss,)… But he says, ‘Well
now, Jed, I might do that but, then were would he
go?...Back to the streets! Just another thief trusting
ta luck till he gets himself hung.’…Then he tells me how
he’s thinking that he could teach the child some kind o’
trade and so make the world at least a bit o’ a better
place.”
Jed paused here and glanced at Denobi. She didn’t move
so he continued.
“Well knowing how that sort of thing often works out I
says, ‘That’s a fine idea, Kid…But, in case you haven’t
noticed, this one’s a half-blood and you know what kind
of trouble they bring. Not only that, what are ya
think’in to do if he don’t think it’s so fine an idea?
Suppose he don’t quite see how it would benefit him in
the future and gives ya a bit of trouble.’…
‘Simple,’ says the fool, ‘I’ll just do like a good
father would and whip ‘im’ I laughed at that, I did. And
ya should ‘av seen look on his face then. See he’s
terribly clever ‘bout most things but only because he’s
so terribly dense ‘bout every thing else, and of course
how would he know a good father see’in as how he never
knew his.”
Finally, Denobi looked up at Kid Kull. The elf stared at
his empty bowl in silence. The perpetual grin had faded
and he looked to her almost as if he had changed into a
young boy. A boy who knew he had failed. She swallowed
hard angry at her self for feeling sorry.
Jed continued.
“So I says, ‘Alright Kid, ya do what ya think is best,
and if nothing else it might teach ya a valuable lesson,
so that when ya do become a father you’ll be ready. So
he does just that. I just leave ‘im be. Course, I did
start ta worry again when I saw what a feisty thing she
really was. And when he found out ‘he’ was a she, I
thought fur shore he would give it up. But, no, if
there’s one thing those two have in common it’s their
bloody stubbornness. So now I’m thinking that if this is
going to work we’re going ta have ta be frank with one
another. Stop assume’in things and find out what the
truth is.”
Jed was finished and all three sat in silence for what
seemed like hours. A man at the back of the room called
for a beer. Jed stood up.
“Talk to each other for god’s sake.”
He left. Kid Kull finally looked up.
“He’s good with words,” he said slowly, “…unlike me”
He fell silent and Denobi nodded, understanding.
“This may surprise you but I might have been a little
more willing if you had just asked me,” She said
reluctantly.
Kid Kull looked away for a moment. Denobi noted that
while he did this he squinted his eyes as if looking in
to the sun. Something her father had done when he was
thinking. She swallowed hard.
“Do you want to leave then?” he asked finally.
Denobi shrugged, “Would you let me?”
“Well…as much as I hate being wrong I think Jed is
right. I can’t just force you to become a good citizen.
It would be counter productive to keep you here.”
Denobi thought for a moment.
“Would you hire me?”
Kid Kull looked at her in surprise.
“Well, I had considered it at first but, I figured you
wouldn’t accept considering your status.”
Denobi winced at the reminder.
“I could always have someone else buy things for me but,
I want the money.”
Kid Kull stared at her a moment as if trying to figure
her out.
“I’d have to be able to trust that you won’t be stealing
from my customers…or from me.”
Denobi grinned.
“I never take what I don’t need and as long as you’re
paying me you can defiantly trust me.”
Kid studied her a moment. Finally he nodded.
“Very well I’ll hire you.”
Kid Kull held out a hand to her. Denobi hesitated a
moment then shook it. Kid Kull rose taking his bowl and
her own.
“For your sake I hope I won’t regret this.”
With that he disappeared into the kitchen
As Denobi sat watching the Elves sit around the fire
laughing and telling each other the latest news and
jokes, she wondered just what she had gotten her self
into. It had been her plan when she had arrived here to
start at the fighting tournaments and simple beat every
Warrior in Neetherel so that the king was bound to take
notice of her but, she had found out quickly that it was
not as easy as it sounded. Every tournament she tried to
sign up for had let her know that they required an entry
fee but, since half-bloods weren’t allowed to pay their
own fees they had to be sponsored. Now that Kid Kull had
agreed to hire her, she was at least one step closer to
goal. But, being accountable to someone besides herself
was not something she was accustomed to. Besides that,
Kid Kull struck her as somewhat of an eccentric.
Everything, from the way he dressed to the way he
talked, struck her as slightly…off. It was something
about him that interested and mystified her at the same
time.
“Well ah’m glad to see ya managed ta work out yur
differences.”
Jed appeared beside her, bringing her out of her
troubling thoughts. She looked around and noticed the
tavern had emptied of nearly all its earlier patrons.
Only two elves remained near the fire heads bent close
together whispering in hushed tones. The sound of dishes
came from the kitchen where Kid Kull had gone.
“Will you be staying then?”
Denobi nodded slightly.
“I figured since I happen to need some money just now to
give him a chance.”
“You mean he’s hired ya for pay?” the elf’s eyes widened
in surprise.
Denobi felt slightly annoyed.
“Yes, that’s what we agreed to.”
“Ah see,” He said uncertainly. He glanced away as the
two men who had been at the fireplace stood to leave.
Once they had gone He shrugged and switched the subject,
“guess ah’ll be heading home now and pray ta God I don’t
find you’ve both killed each other by the time ah come
back in the morning”
“You don’t live here with Kid Kull?” asked Denobi. This
time it was her turn to look surprised.
“Nay, Ah live with my mother at the docks. I only come
by after noon to help with the supper crowd.”
“Oh” Denobi didn’t know what else to say.
“Well then, Good night, miss,” he said, “and good luck.”
With that he left, pausing only to step into the kitchen
a moment and then was gone leaving Denobi alone with Kid
Kull.
Kid Kull appeared a second later and went out the back
door. He returned with Hera at his heels and locked the
door behind him. After he had done the same to the front
door he gave the saphera a couple of bones left over
from the meal. Then, he turned to Denobi.
“I guess we’d better fix you some place to sleep then.”
Denobi followed him upstairs and stood to one side as he
pulled the bed apart to create two separate beds. The
monkey appeared out of nowhere and supervised the
progress with loud screams until Kid Kull threw a
blanket over him told him to be quiet. When they were
through, Kid Kull offered Denobi the bed still on the
wooden frame, but Denobi insisted on having the one on
the floor.
“I’m used to sleeping on the ground.” She pointed out.
Kid Kull hesitated then shrugged his shoulders.
“Suit yourself.”
“I will think you”
Denobi flopped down on the mattress and grabbed the
blanket off the silenced monkey. As soon as it was free
the animal scampered across the floor and onto Kid
Kull’s bed. Kid began to undress. As Denobi watched Kid
Kull drew a key from his boot and opened the padlocked
chest. Then, He drew from his belt a long knife which he
placed gently inside. Next, he took off his over shirt
to reveal two knives strapped to his chest. He placed
then on top of the first one and removed his undershirt.
Strapped to his left arm was another longer blade. This
was followed by a short ivory blade from a hidden pocket
in his pants. Finally, he took off his boots and emptied
them of four small knives identical in shape. All these
he placed inside the chest which he secured once again.
Then he glanced at Denobi. She coughed.
“That’s quite a collection you carry.”
“Listen! Don’t be getting any idea now. I happen to have
this thing about my knives…I don’t like anyone touching
them and I defiantly won’t have any one stealing any of
them. If I ever have reason to suspect that you’ve been
in here…well then, I’m afraid even Jed won’t be able to
save you.”
She gave him the most charming smile she could muster.
“What? little ole me try and steal your knives? I
wouldn’t even think of it.”
Kid Kull flashed her an equally charming smile.
“Oh I’m serious! If you don’t want to lose both your
hands you’ll stay away from this chest.”
“Don’t worry,” She said, “I won’t touch your knives. By
the way, that reminds me, I would like my own knife
back. It was my fathers and I happen to care about it
very much.”
Kid Kull nodded and pulled a knife out of another pocket
in his pants. He held it up and Denobi saw that it was
her own. She leapt to her feet and went to grab it but
Kid Kull held it out of reach.
“How can I be sure that you’re not still mad at me and
planning to cut my throat?”
Denobi stomped her foot I frustration.
“Give me my blade elf. If I wanted to cut your throat I
wouldn’t use my own knife.”
Kid Kull stared down at her mock surprise written on his
face.
“Oh really?”
He dropped his arm and Denobi took the knife from him.
“You sure have a way of making an elf feel safe around
you.”
Denobi bared her teeth at him and returned to her
makeshift bed. Kid Kull went to the table in the corner
and lit the lamp. Sitting down he begin arranging the
papers and pens.
“Tell me about yourself, Edenobi.”
“You can call me Denobi,” She said slipping the knife
into her belt.
“Very well, Denobi, tell me about your father.”
Denobi tensed.
“I…I’d rather not.”
“I was just curious because you mentioned that he gave
you that knife.”
Denobi touched her knife gently feeling a lump form in
her throat. The elf continued.
“I happened to know a bit about knives and yours is
extremely uniquely and well crafted. Was it stolen
perhaps?”
“Of course not,” she retorted sharply, “My father
crafted all of his weapons himself.”
Kid Kull finally turned to look at her. The light
outside was fading and Denobi couldn’t make out his
expression because the lamp was behind him.
“Your father made that knife?”
“Yes.”
He turned his back to her once again. Denobi watched him
confused by this reaction and wondering why he would
care so much about her knife.
“Why did you leave Ruen?” he asked finally.
For a second she was tempted to tell him everything. She
was tired of keeping secrets and she had felt underneath
the initial mistrust a sense of relief when he had
discovered that she was a girl. It would be nice to have
some one she could confide in. but then, she wasn’t sure
she could trust him yet and she had come too far to lose
everything now. Still, she could tell him part of it.
“My father happened to be a great man in Ruen.” She
began “When he died I was expected to take his place. In
fact he had spent most of his life making sure that I
would succeed him. That’s why he made sure every one
thought I was his son. Ruen has a rather harsh system of
order and he did what he had to, to protect me.”
Denobi curled up on the mattress as the memories begin
to come back to her.
“You may think me terribly ungrateful but, I never
really wanted any of it. In fact I wanted more than any
thing to live here in Neetherel. That why I left. I came
here to see if I could become one of the king’s warriors
so I could live in the city with the protection of the
king. It’s the next best thing to being an elf. My
father had worked so hard while he was alive to make me
proud of what I was but, he just couldn’t understand
that it was my pride that would never let me be
satisfied with having to hide my face just because I
wasn’t a full elf.”
Denobi felt tears coming and had to stop.
“You don’t strike me as the ungrateful type,” said Kid
Kull after a moment.
He stood and turned the light out. Denobi heard him make
his way to the other bed and lay down. The disturbed
monkey screeched in protest and Denobi heard him scamper
across the floor
“You’re definitely not the only person I know who’s made
that choice.”
Denobi smiled to her self. Perhaps it would not be so
bad after all.
***
Kid Kull’s tavern, Denobi discovered, was called The
Blade. It’s mark was a large wooden short blade that
hung above the door, painted to look as though it were
of an eastern craftsmanship. The first few week of
settling in went more or less…well. Kid Kull woke her at
dawn each morning and gave her the chores of sweeping
the dinning area, restocking the upstairs beer supply,
and bringing in wood from the back alley. She was also
required to fill the Water supply for the bathing every
other day and do her own laundry at least once a week.
When she had finished her chores Kid Kull gave her free
time in which she was allowed to whatever she wished,
which included leaving the tavern. The only requirement
was that she was back before noon when The Blade opened
for business.
Denobi took advantage of her free time to explore
Neetherel and get to know some of the city’s Pure-blood
low life. Every day she would take off as soon as her
chores were done and hang out wherever she was least
likely to run into trouble. That usually meant in the
slums of the city where the less fortunate citizens
lived. These elves, mostly the disfigured and
handicapped who had converted to unlawful means of
living out of necessity, tended to be more accepting
than the upper classes because of their circumstance.
They, like Denobi, knew what it was like to be hated for
something they had no control over.
Among these was an Elf called Man because he had had
both his ears cut off by a jealous lover. Man had a
small boat and made an unsteady living during the day as
a fisher. But at night he gave passage to any who would
normally have trouble finding a ship that would accept
them. As would be expected, the majority of his
passengers were outlaws and Half-bloods. Denobi got to
know Man when she had asked about for a way to send a
letter to Ruen. After she had sent her letter she went
to see him every day to see if there had been any
answer. He was the type that liked to talk and Denobi
found that what he had to say was often very useful.
After just a few days she came to enjoy his company very
much and would sometimes help him clean fish as she
listened to whatever he had to say that day.
When Denobi would return to The Blade at noon each day
she would find Jed already there. They would open the
tavern shortly after and serve beer only until
suppertime. Kid Kull always cooked the evening’s meal by
himself and didn’t allow anyone else in the kitchen
until it was time to start serving.
“Cooking’s his pride and joy, and sometimes his escape
from reality,” Jed explained. “When he’s in a mood he’ll
go in there and lock himself up fur hours, sometimes
more, depend’in on how bad he’s feel’in. Once when ah
first started work’in for him, two years ago, he locked
himself in there for an entire day and turned out a
banquet fit fur a king. Afterwards, he just invited all
the locals ta a free buffet. Never would tell me what
set that off.”
Since he had hired her Kid Kull had begin to treat
Denobi with more or less indifference. He was never
cruel or rude to her as he had been the first day but
now he hardly ever spoke to her except to ask her to do
something. He didn’t even ask her where she had been
after she returned from her daily outings. Jed on the
other hand was very kind and seemed glad to have someone
to talk to. It wasn’t that Kid Kull never talked to any
one; in fact he was almost always chatting with his
customers, but, it seemed to Denobi that he just took
less interest in the people working for him.
Denobi learned quickly when she wanted to and with Jed’s
as her teacher she had soon become an excellent
waitress. She no longer tried to hide that she was a
girl but, because her hair was cut and she had only her
own pants, and a few things Kid Kull had given her, most
elves took her for a boy and she never bothered to
correct them. She found it odd though, that after having
to avoid most elves outside The Blade she would return
to serve the same elves and get much more civil
treatment. She had only one bad encounter while in the
tavern and it had occurred just two days after she had
started.
That day one of the custom a large and burly elf had
called for a couple of beers and Denobi, seeing Jed was
busy had gone to serve him. When she had brought the
cups to him he had looked up at her with a friendly
smile but, it had quickly turned into a look of disgust.
The Elf leapt to his feet roaring and with a sweep of
his hand caused the beer that Denobi held to spill all
over her shirt. Denobi cried out and glared at him with
irritation.
“Hey! What was that for?” she growled.
“How dare you…you…human-spawn,” he yelled at her, “I
don’t want your disgusting hands on my beer.”
Denobi clenched her teeth trying to control herself.
“Watch your tongue, fairy” She spat using the derogatory
name that the human’s had given them long ago, “that’s
two sife for the beer and I’d advise you to be a bit
more careful in the future.”
“How dare you speak to me like that! I’m not paying you
for anything…”
Denobi reached for her knife without thinking and
suddenly she felt a strong hand on hers. She looked up
and saw Kid Kull standing beside her, smiling down at
the man.
“Is there a problem, sir?” He asked stressing the title.
The entire room had gone silent and every one watched to
see what would happen next.
“Of course there is,” the elf roared, “I came here
because I was told this was a good and reputable place.
It appears I was misinformed. There ain’t one good and
reputable place on earth where there’s a half-blood.”
Kid Kull stood unmoving until the man finished.
“Well then,” he said finally, “If you have a problem
with how I run my business I suggest you go elsewhere.
Otherwise I expect an apology if you ever wish to step
foot in this place again.”
The elf stared in disbelief at Kid Kull.
“Ap…p…pologize,” He sputtered, “to that daughter of a whore?”
Denobi tensed as she considered how nice it would be to
gut the arrogant elf but, Kid Kull put a warning hand on
her shoulder.
“Very well, sir, that will be two sife for the beer and
I wish you a good day.”
The man had looked ready to blow up but instead he had
slapped the coins into Kid Kull’s hand and stormed out
of the building. After that Denobi had no more trouble.
From what she knew of Kid Kull he seemed to have a sort
of multiple personality disease where he acted like a
very cheerful and high spirited type of person most of
the time but then there were the certain times, like
when he received letters with the royal seal on them,
when she would find him sharp and easily irritated.
During the day he left Denobi and Jed to serve by them
selves and would spend his time talking and joking with
visitors. Once in a while he would leave with some one
and come back hours later. When she asked Jed where he
went off to he told her the Kid Kull was often called to
judge fights and contests between rivals. Denobi had
noticed that he seemed to be very well respected by many
of the Netherel citizens but why he was so highly
esteemed she couldn’t figure out.
The strangest thing about Kid Kull was that Denobi
always had a feeling when she that he was someone she
had known a long time ago. Kind of like some one she had
seen every day but never spoken to. She had asked Man
one day what he knew about the Elf and he had told her.
“Kid Kull? He’s an odd fellow. Not much that anyone
knows about him. They say he’s pretty good with just
about any weapon but, he’s never entered any contests so
it’s just talk as far as I’m concerned. He just appeared
out of nowhere about three years ago and set up that
quant little place of his. Got a reputation for serving
some of the best food hereabout and his prices aren’t
too bad either. Doesn’t get along with royals so well
though. I heard a tale once that the one and only Lord
Sebastian came visiting and stopped by the Blade.
Somehow he ended up pissing off the Elf and got thrown
out on his ass. They say Kid Kull knocked the Lord’s jaw
loose and he still speaks with a slur. But I wouldn’t
know because I never met the man. If you want ta know
what I think, I think Kid Kull’s got a little of the
royal blood himself. How else would he get away with a
thing like that? And why is he always traveling south to
the Castles? That my girl is what I’d like to know.”
But, dispite her curiosity, Denobi could never bring
herself to ask Kid Kull about himself. Not that she was
afraid of him but, whenever she would consider the
action she would always get this feeling like she had
with her father when she thought of asking about her
mother. Besides, it had been less than three week and
she had time. She just needed to get a bit more
comfortable before she was ready to approach Kid Kull. |
