The Far Wild

7 - An Adventure Worthy Of My Time

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Senesio

“Ah, Elpida,” I said, giving a dramatic bow. “I am, as ever, at your service.” Though, preferably that service would take place when my head wasn’t on the verge of splitting in two. It was afternoon now and I’d only had a few hours of sleep since the previous night’s libations. Nonetheless, I flashed a smile that said there was nothing I’d rather be doing. As usual, it had little effect on the hard-bitten guidemaster.

“Sit,” she said, jabbing a quill at one of the chairs in front of her desk.

I eased into one and tried not to look too perturbed about the fact that, somehow, the world had started spinning even more.

“To what do I owe the honor of this parlay?”

“Yesterday you collected the trading post’s bounty on that impaler.” It was a statement, not a question.

“I, of course, relish any chance to serve the people of this fine colony, guidemaster. It was a pleasure to be of assistance.”

“Care to explain, then, why I’m told the college has a new pet?”

Ah. So she’d heard about that. I didn’t let my smile slip.

“You know those bookish types. They’ll put anything in a cage and study it. Probably they caught a stray cat or something.”

She pulled her ever-present gorgam rum flask from her coat and unscrewed the cap.

“You ever seen a cat that’s big as a hog, with a stinger and a penchant for killing people?”

“Sounds about as friendly as any cat,” I said with a shrug.

“Senesio.” Elpida took a long drink from the flask, then leveled a stare at me. “You collected the trading post’s bounty on the impaler, then turned around and sold the same creature to the college.”

“With all due respect, guidemaster, that’s a particularly crass way to describe an otherwise elegant solution to two problems.” I gave an innocent shrug because I was, of course, innocent. “The trading post wanted the impaler gone; the college wanted to study it. I solved both problems at once.”

“I’m not bandying words with you, Senesio. Call it what you want but you’re paying the trading post back.”

I placed a hand on my chest, recoiling at the absurdity of the suggestion. “You’ll forgive me for saying so, guidemaster, but that’s simply—”

“Ahem.”

The sound came from behind. I turned in my seat to find a woman had just entered the office. Her face was weathered from the elements and tanned from years in the sun, but even so, it was obvious she was from the capital. Her posture gave it away, and her hair, cropped close in a military cut. And it helped, of course, that I knew of her. I made a point of knowing anyone of stature, after all, seeing as I’d be rubbing shoulders with them sooner rather than later.

This woman, in particular, I’d heard a great deal about. Captain Giorgia Barba. A legend in the empire, and not in a good way. She served as one of the emperor’s personal enforcers. How had I missed her arrival in Lekarsos?

Her face was all sharp edges and angles, piercing eyes above a pointed nose that led down to a crisp scowl. Even the wrinkles spreading out from her eyes and the corners of her mouth did little to soften the edge to her features.

“Move,” she said, with all the authority of someone accustomed to being obeyed.

“With pleasure, madam,” I said, rising from my chair, then sweeping one arm out in a flourish as I bowed and stepped aside.

“Captain Barba,” Elpida said, all anger gone from her face as she greeted the new arrival and bowed her head in respect. “Will you sit?” She gestured to a chair, but the offer went ignored.

“I’m here on official business. Direct from the capital.” Barba nodded to a folded piece of parchment in her hand, but didn’t offer it up to be read. You didn’t question the word of Captain Barba. Not if you liked all of your limbs, anyway.

“The capital has long been monitoring suspected Bospurian action in Lekarsos. It’s believed they are preparing to make their move.”

Bospurians in Lekarsos? Orders direct from the capital? I could barely stop myself from smiling. Now here was news worth hearing. Hunting the occasional predator that crossed the tidal flats was one thing, but this? This was so much more. This had the potential to be an adventure worthy of my time.

“Just a moment, captain,” Elpida said, then turned her eyes to me and scowled. “Senesio. Leave.”

“Of course, of course,” I said, nodding emphatically, then turned to the captain. “My most esteemed Captain Barba. If I may first steal but a moment of your time, I think I may be of some assistance.”

Her brow furrowed, then rose cynically.

“You see, just this morning I prevented a most despicable theft.”

“This is hardly time for your antics, Senesio,” Elpida hissed at me. “Get out of my office.”

I ignored her. “A masked individual was in the process of making off with a report from the Imperial College before I stepped in—most heroically—to waylay him and retrieve the documents.” That got the captain’s attention. Her eyes widened just a smidge and she cocked her head ever so slightly to one side. She was interested now.

“What sort of report?”

“If I recall, the naturalist’s apprentice I returned it to said it was a survey of... ” I wracked my brain for a moment, making sure I got the phrasing exact. Ah, yes. There it was. I fought a smile, then spoke slow and precise. “A survey of magnesia ore deposits in the Far Wild.”

If the captain had been interested before, now she was doubly so. Her eyes snapped over to the guidemaster, then back to me.

“Who was this apprentice?”

“One Suni Koudounas, captain.” And she could have made a great biographer if she hadn’t run off immediately. “She was on her way to an expedition, I believe? Sprinted off toward the skyship fields.”

“Kamil was leaving this morning,” Elpida said suddenly, then began digging through a haphazard stack of papers on her desk before pulling one of them free. “Yeah, the schedule says he was cleared for a three-week expedition.”

“What became of this thief?” Captain Barba said, snapping back toward me.

“Alas, he escaped. Suni was considerably more interested in recovering the report so I rendered assistance.”

“Smart girl,” Elpida said.

“The schedule lists the expedition’s planned stops, I presume?” Captain Barba said, nodding toward the paper in Elpida’s hand.

“Not as such, no. It’s primarily a field research expedition, so the exact course remains somewhat fluid. We know the general area they’ll be in, though. And they’re scheduled to be in Clearwater Outpost in a week and a half to take on fresh water.”

“Good enough.” Captain Barba rose. “Send word to the Governess. I want guards stationed across every inch of the college, and a manhunt underway to find the thief. And bring me the report he tried to steal.”

“You think this is all related?” Elpida asked, eyes narrowing.

“I’m not taking any chances.”

Ooh, now this was getting interesting. The good captain was here on orders from the capital, which any fool knew translated to orders from the emperor himself. Likewise, any fool would also know that helping the captain complete her mission would be sure to result in a reward. One that, considering the emperor himself was involved, could be rather generous.

So, then. Truly an adventure worthy of my time.

“See those orders done, then meet me at the skyship fields in the morning. The Stormcrow took some damage in the crossing, but nothing that won’t be fixed by morning. We leave as soon as it’s repaired, to bring Kamil and his expedition back,” Captain Barba said.

“Right away.” Elpida nodded.

“And guidemaster?”

“Ma’am?”

“I’ll need the best guides Lekarsos has to offer.”

“That’d be Oz, er, Ozymandias Andreas.”

“And you. You’re the guidemaster here. If Bospur is involved in this, there’s a good chance things could get ugly. We may have need of your experience.”

“Of course, ma’am,” Elpida said, looking none too happy about it.

“Make the preparations, then. I want us in the air before the sun’s up tomorrow.” She nodded, then strode towards the exit. With each step she took, I could feel my chance disappearing.

“Captain, if I may... ”

She paused a moment.

“This expedition sounds like it has the potential to become terribly dangerous. The Far Wild is a vast, untamed land, after all. Made all the worse if the Bospurians are up to their usual meddling. I don’t wish to question your preparedness, of course, but if you would allow it, I’d like to volunteer my services in this endeavor.”

The doubt in her eyes was apparent. “Who are you, again?”

“Who am I?” I chuckled and drew my face into a confident smile. “Why, Captain, I’m surprised you don’t recognize me. In Mercer they honor me as the Tamer of Serpents. In Teshkai they call me He of Great Thoughts. Even the horse lords of the Ghenti Steppe have given me a name: Fear, for that is what I’ve inspired in the hearts of those ruthless nomads. All of these pale, of course, to my actual name.” I gave a bow, then raised my eyes to meet hers—slow, slow, not too fast now—and smiled even wider. “My name is Senesio Suleiman Nicolaou, and I’m the gentleman adventurer you’ve been looking for.”

She huffed at that, doing her best to look unimpressed. Or maybe she was actually unimpressed. Her next words stopped me from caring.

“A few of my men caught the bleeding fever on our passage across the Carritaenean. Perhaps you can be an... acceptable replacement. You’ll report to Elpida for the duration.” With that she spun on her heel and strode from the office. When she was gone, I turned toward Elpida and cracked a smile.

Her only response was a curse and a long drag from her flask.