I left the workshop soon after having calmed myself. The whole ordeal had been much too troubling to keep working for that day. I walked quickly through the streets, glancing left and right and preparing myself so that I would not freeze this time. That had been embarrassing. I don’t know what would have happened if Flyssa had not been there to pull me out of it. But I was an accountant, damn it! The most combat I had ever seen was those judo classes they made us take in middle school. I had shot a few times before with my grandfather’s hunting rifle, but the sound was nowhere near as loud as the one the spells made. Those had been more like explosions. Still. It would not do. I was no longer in a peaceful country, only having to worry about mundane things. I had to get that into my mind.

I had planned on going back to the bookshop, but I found Inrak on my way there, talking nervously with Sirmy at her stall. They both shouted with relief when they saw me.

“Luc! There you are!”

“We were worried! It sounded like it came from the harbour.”

“It did,” I replied. “We heard a very loud bang so we shuttered ourselves in the workshop until it passed.” I didn’t tell them Flyssa and I had been so close to it. I saw no point in scaring them even more.

“Did you see what it was?” asked Sirmy. She was holding her daughter against her. Ripsile, for once, was quiet and subdued.

“I didn’t, but Faros said they were probably Mages fighting. Something about the Duchess’ succession.”

“Damned Schalass and their bloody successions!” exclaimed Inrak, making a bunch of whistling noises. She immediately calmed down upon realizing who was in front of her. “Sorry, Sirmy. I’m sorry, Ripsile. That was rude of me.”

Sirmy waved her down.

“You don’t have to apologize. We know. And I agree. This tradition of having as many children as you can afford and let them fight for their inheritance is outdated and barbaric. Do you know, it caused a huge scandal in my family when I told them I would not have any more children after Ripsile. They almost banished me! I was lucky that my brother put a stop to it, but it still left us somewhat apart from the rest of the family. We don’t see them often. Especially now that my brother is no longer with us.”

The little girl in her arms spoke up, perhaps sensing her mother’s distress.

“But it’s okay, ‘cause we made our own family. Right, Mama?”

“Yes, my love, you’re right,” answered Sirmy with a smile.

I watched them with a smile, my heart torn with envy. I wanted what they had. I needed my family.

Perhaps Inrak felt my distress.

“Luc, we should get home,” she said. “I would like to talk with you about the incident.”

“Yeah, sure. Goodbye guys.”

“Goodbye, Luc, Inrak. Stay safe,” said Sirmy. Ripsile waved at us with a laugh, any trace of her earlier anxiety having vanished.

We did not talk during the walk back to the bookshop. Inrak hummed quietly and I had a lot on my mind. The fighting between the Duchess’ heirs threatened everything I had worked for. There must be something that I could do.

Inrak stopped her humming as we arrived.

“Would you prepare us some tea?” she asked me. “I will close down here and then we will talk.”

“Uh. All right.” The tone she used triggered bells in my head. I could swear my mother had used the very same on numerous occasions. Was I in trouble? Wait, why was I worried about being in trouble? I was an adult! Still, I climbed the stairs and put the pan on the small wood stove that served both as heater and kitchen appliance. I had spent some studying the enchantments on it and felt reasonably certain that I could create one. There was no profit in it though. A Winory Archmage had developed a cheap and efficient prototype and had released it to the people living near the University after a particularly rough winter. It had spread from there. Basically every household in Sturron possessed one now.

Inrak joined me a moment later. She had resumed her humming. It may have been me, but the sound felt ominous.

She cleaned up some while waiting for the water to boil, still not saying anything. When it did, she put some leaves in the teapot, poured the water in and took two cups. Then she sat down at the table and looked at me. The humming stopped.

“So, Luc,” she said. “Will you tell me what really happened?”

I sighed. Had I been that transparent? I knew I had never made a very good liar, but still. That was embarrassing.

“All right. First of all, I’m fine. I didn’t want to worry you. I don’t know exactly what happened. I saw very little. We were walking back from a meeting on a ship with Flyssa when we heard the explosion, or whatever it was. Aeromancers, Faros said. I don’t know how close we were from it, but I don’t think we were in any real danger. Flyssa and I fled through the streets until we reached the workshop and then we barricaded ourselves there. But I’m fine, I tell you. A little running can’t hurt me that much. It was just unexpected, you know. Everybody seems certain that it was about the succession. Do you have any idea why it got so violent all of a sudden?”

“I’ve talked a bit with my customers here. There was a rumour that the Duchess took a turn for the worse, that’s probably what got them all excited.” She made a series of frustrated whistles. “It’s always like this. Every time. They flood the world with their babies and drop them into the world and let fate decide. It’s supposed to be a winnowing, a way for the best to rise to the top. As you can guess, it fosters a certain kind of culture. Sometimes I think that without the other species, Sturron would become a shithole.”

She truly must have been annoyed to use that kind of language.

“But the Schalass Dukes and Duchess have held power for a long time, no?”, I said. “Surely if it was that bad, the city would see much more violence in general. It’s been mostly quiet since I’ve been here, and there are a lot of public services that you wouldn’t expect in a cut-throat society like you describe. The baths for example.”

“That proves my point. It’s not a widely known fact, but the creation of the baths as they stand today is the result of the work of the only Lompres to ever serve as councillor to the Duke. The Lompres are a tight community, never straying far from water. Their day doesn’t start until they’ve had a good soak. She saw the benefits it had on the health of her community and worked hard to create the same opportunity for every resident of Sturron. I had a book that talked about it. I’ll lend it to you.”

She shook her head and didn’t let me reply.

“But that’s not what I wanted to discuss with you. You told me about your world and your country. I think it is important that you realize something. You are no longer there. You have spent your life learning how to live there, you have built preconceptions. You must understand that they do not all apply here. Power doesn’t manifest itself in the same way. Here, in Sturron and in the rest of the world, power is a capacity for violence. Nothing is built and nothing is kept without violence. I could be the best Bookkeeper in the world and I would have no more power and influence than the best Mage or Warrior would grant me. It is good that you ran away when you heard the fighting. It was a good reaction. It’s the one you must learn at all costs. You have a good heart, Luc. I have seen you make friends with everyone you met. I know that you like to help people. It’s a great quality.” She made a strident whistle that made me jump. Then she carried on her speech. “You should bury it for a while. Keep your head low, focus on your business. And above all, do not get involved!” Her eyes narrowed and she stared at me as if I had already transgressed.

“I assure you, Inrak, I had no plans on getting involved in the succession,” I told her. “I told you about Ana and that Schalass coming to me. I turned them down. I just want to make some money and study Aether magic.”

“Hm. Good. But do not forget that you would be valuable to them. For your magic for one, but especially for your origins. That’s why you must not even think about coming close to the succession. Should they ever learn who you are, I fear that I would never see you again.”

I took her hand and smiled.

“I will be careful, I promise. As a matter of fact, I was wondering if I should try to look up ways to protect myself. Do you have anything here? Maybe I could learn another school of magic, one more focused on defensive capabilities. What do you think?”

“I’m not sure it is a good idea. It took you months to reach a passable level in Aether magic. I don’t think you have the time to learn another one, especially since we may not have months before the fighting ramps up considerably. You should concentrate on doing what most of us do. Stay low and alert.”

“That’s fair, I guess. What about learning a martial art or becoming a warrior of some sort? How would I go about it?”

She actually made a little snort at that comment, which wasn’t a sound I had ever heard from her. Pterars usually reacted with the sound of their voice coming from their beak, not from their nostrils. My Human self must have been a bad influence.

“I am not trying to be mean, Luc,” she said, “but if there’s one thing you are not it’s a fighter.”

“What!” I exclaimed, offended to my core. “I can fight! I did some judo in middle school!”

“I don’t know what that is.”

So I explained judo to her. Then I had to explain our education system in detail because she had a lot of questions that took up most of our evening. Talking with her put the threat to the back of my mind. I did not forget it though, and despite what Inrak had said, I was still going to look for ways to protect myself. Perhaps it was time to petition the Goddess of magic. I had a lot of questions of my own.

The Bourok meeting went as planned the next day. The city lived as if nothing had happened. Tork was leading Flyssa and I. He had left behind his cart and walked quietly in front of us, the plates on his back half folded, almost as if he was ready to roll up to protect himself. I didn’t think it had anything to do with yesterday’s attack though. Tork was just stressed out. This meeting was almost as important for him as it was for us. He was the one vouching for us. He had made sure before we left that we were aware of the basics of Bourok civility. I would need to thank him after this. I had perhaps not fully realized the opportunity he had given us.

The Bourok quarter was situated on the eastern side of the city, not far from the walls and close to the area where Merchants and Captains stored their merchandise in a series of hangars. Accordingly, it wasn’t the most prestigious part of Sturron, which became evident once we reached it. There was no fountain here, and though the streets were cobbled, the grime covering them made me wonder if the Hydromancers paid to clean the city had forgotten to come here. I saw almost no stalls, food or otherwise. We passed a few smithies and a tailor but the decrepit walls lining the streets belonged mostly to small houses. I found it surprising. I had kept hearing about the talent of the Bourok Crafters. I had expected something else. On top of that, we saw only two Bouroks. I threw an interrogating glance at Flyssa but she did not notice. She was focused on her pitch.

“Hey, Tork,” I called. The Messenger slowed down and turned around to face me.

“Yes?”

“Isn’t this the Bourok quarter? Why are there mostly Humans and Schalass?”

“Oh, there are few of us, comparatively. The name was given when we settled here and it stayed. It is meant to be degrading.”

“I… see.” I hesitated. I had inquired a little about his species’ history. They had been enslaved for a long time, used for their strength and their mobility some times as servants, some times as no more than beasts of burden. The community here was part of a group of Bouroks that had escaped and found refuge in Sturron. A previous Duke had welcomed them mostly as spite towards the nation from where they came. They were free, but the stigma had stayed with them. I did not wish to offend him so I reined in my curiosity.

“Were you born around here?” I asked.

“I was!” he replied, his face lighting up. “I will show the house after if you wish. My father still lives there.”

“How big are Bouroks families anyway?”

“It’s hard to say. We don’t really have the concept of family like you Humans, or even Schalass, have. We are very independent, in a way. My father has had four children for example, but I was the only one he had with my mother. And it is the same for her. She has had three.”

“Oh, all right. But that’s a lot of children though, isn’t it? Why aren’t we seeing more Bouroks? Have they all left?”

By the way that Flyssa’s head rose and her eyes opened wide, I knew that I had fucked up. So much for not being too curious.

She started to say something, probably to apologize, but Tork waved her off with a small smile.

“It’s fine,” he said. “I know that you are not from here. You should not ask too many questions like that at the meeting though. It’s a sensitive subject.”

“Shit, I’m sorry, Tork. I didn’t mean to offend you.” Though now I was even more curious.

“I know, Luc. Do not worry. And to answer you, some of us have indeed left to find fortune elsewhere. But the main reason why you do not see more of us is because of the curse.”

“The curse?” I repeated, frowning.

“Yes, the Bourok have suffered the curse from most of our existence. I will tell you the story one day if you wish, though you will have to pay for the drinks. Suffice it to say, it is the main reason why you will not see many, if any, Bourok Mage and why I had to work hard to convince my kin that you could be trusted.”

Well, fuck me. Curses were real? Of course they were, magic existed in this world so why not curses? Add that to the pile of things that could kill me.

“I’m sorry, Tork,” I said. “I had no idea. Thank you for putting your neck out for me… I mean you don’t really have one. Your tail out? Anyway. It doesn’t matter. Thank you. I appreciate it.”

He laughed, all traces of my mistake forgotten. I hoped his kin were all like him, because that Bourok was an angel.

“It is nothing,” he said. “You have been a friend to me. And we must overcome our prejudices. Magic could benefit the Bouroks greatly, especially Aether magic. I hope that you will be able to convince them.”

“So do I.”

“And I too,” added Flyssa with a nervous smile.