Chapter 18: Bargain

“Freedom is a fickle, costly mistress to keep. But whatever she asks you to pay, it’s worth it.”

-The Prince of Rogues, date unknown.

Stephan sipped at his whiskey and waited, shuffling in his seat. It had been uncomfortably long since the wildkin had left, and Stephan was awfully tired of being the only person in the room stripped almost naked. Part of him wished the gang leader would shoot him in the head just to kill the suspense.

“What kind of man are you, Stephan Lordling?” Arqen asked suddenly, in the process of lighting up his pipe.

“A decent one, I hope,” Stephan said. “At least I try to be. I take it you’re the philosophical kind.”

Arqen chuckled. “Correct on that count. I’m not just some thug, you know. I can see it in your eyes, that’s what you think.”

Stephan glanced back at the armed guard. “You have to admit…”

“I understand how it must feel. But I believe in justice. In honor. And if—”

Arqen was interrupted by a knock on the door. He bid the person enter, and the wildkin, Aerog, came in.

“Ah, just the man I wanted to see,” Arqen said. “What do you have to report about our former brother?”

Aerog shot Stephan a hard glare as he walked across the room to stand before the desk, furry arms clasped behind his back. “It appears… that Lordling’s words ring true. Pontus had a few friends among us, but none that could defend all of his actions. In fact, a fair number condemned him.”

“That settles it. Lordling, I apologize for your treatment. Knowing what I do now, I wish I hadn’t dragged you here. Although, I do have to thank you for taking care of Pontus. I don’t want men like him to taint our ranks and cast doubt over our good name. Will you accept my apology?”

Stephan wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all. He held it back, but couldn’t hide a quivering smile. “Uh, sure. All is forgiven. I just want to get back to tending my bar.” He began to stand, sweeping the rest of his whiskey.

“Not so fast,” Arqen said. He motioned for Stephan to sit back down. “Now that I know where we all stand—between you, Pontus, and I—I have a proposal I’d like to make.”

Aerog placed a clawed hand on Stephan’s shoulder, making it clear that the gang leader wasn’t asking.

Stephan sat.

“Good,” Arqen said. “I’d like to offer you a position here. With us.”

“Doing what?” Stephan asked. “I’m still not entirely clear on what you do here.”

“We have our hands in everything, my friend. But what matters is our goal. A truly free archipelago. The Concord threatens that freedom most at the moment, but the governors of the Free Cities scheme like they always do, not to mention Elandra lurking to the west. So you see, the Revelers fill a vital role in keeping those tyrants at bay. We’re all equals here. Siblings.

“Because of Pontus’s timely death, we will need someone to take up his position. You’ve proven yourself to be fairly astute, Stephan Lordling. I think we could do worse for our replacement. So, what do you say? Do you want to be part of our family?”

“I refuse,” Stephan said evenly.

“You… what?”

“I’m not interested. I don’t want to be a pimp, and I’m certainly not looking to be your pimp.”

“You struck me as a good man. Don’t you want to be part of the liberation of this—”

“Not really. I like freedom as much as the next guy, and I’ll fight for it when I have to, but you sitting there, talking about brotherhoods and equals while you’re bossing people around, rubs me the wrong way. You’re the same as all the other despots of the world, just telling yourself a different lie to justify it.”

Arqen’s gentle features twisted with rage. His face spasmed, lip jerking. He took several deep breaths to soothe himself. “I’m giving you an out here. This hit you pulled with Pontus, it’s not going to go over well with the other gangs either. They’re waiting to see how I deal with you. If you’re absorbed into my organization, they’ll have no choice but to back off. If not…”

“I can handle myself,” Stephan said. He rose from the chair once more. “Now, if there’s nothing else…”

Arqen the Gentle remained silent. He nodded to the two guards, and they closed up behind Stephan.

He turned to leave.

“Best of luck to you, Lordling!” Arqen called when he was halfway out the door. “Although, I suspect we will never meet again.”

*****

“This is a terrible idea,” Lax said.

“I know you think that,” Yin said. “But you’re going to help me anyway, aren’t you?”

They walked to the Pit side by side, the afternoon sun resting over the rooftops. Occasionally, Lax would wave to someone he knew or throw a crude joke their way.

The bouncer ran a hand over his scalp. “It seems that way. You turned out to be a lot more trouble than I bargained for.”

“Stop complaining. I’ll pay you well for your time.”

“Explain that to me, please, because I really don’t get it. How does a street rat like you get her grubby little hands on so much money?”

“I used to be a pirate.”

Lax glanced over at her. He snorted. “You? A pirate?”

She snorted back with exaggerated flair. “Yeah. Me. Is that so hard to believe?”

“It really is.”

“Wenezian Crew. Ever heard of it?”

“Well, yeah, of course I have. But they’re…” He gave her another look. “You’re that girl?”

Yin twirled with a satisfied grin. “Now you’re catching on. Not to brag, but I’m kind of a celebrity.”

Lax stopped in his tracks. “Hang on a minute. If you’re with the Wenezian Crew, why am I still stuck taking care of you? Why don’t you go back to them?”

Yin turned back. “Well, your wife seemed pretty grateful for what I gave her. Insisted she wanted to pay me back, so it seemed rude to refuse. What’s the problem? I thought you were the noble kind.”

“Cut the bullshit, girl. When I asked you if you had any family, you said no.”

“I lied.”

“Clearly. But why? Run away from home?”

Yin shrugged. “Something like that. It’s not like I left forever, I’ve just got to do something before I can go back.”

Lax made an expectant gesture. “Which is?”

“My dad. He’s a good guy and all, but he’s got the wrong idea about me. Thinks he has to protect me or some such nonsense. That I’m too weak to lean on. I want to show him that I can be strong. A hero.”

Lax stared at her for a long moment. “You serious?”

“Of course I’m serious!”

He sighed, shaking his head. “Teens. Ugh. Everything’s so dramatic with you people. “Go back to your dad, talk things through with him. Not everyone has that chance.”

“I know that. I was an orphan all my life before Stephan adopted me. That’s why I’m taking this so seriously. I don’t just want to tell him how I’m feeling— I want to show him. He does a lot for me, but he needs to know that he doesn’t have to coddle me. That’s not fair on either of us.”

Lax kept walking, and Yin followed.

“Whatever you say, girl,” he said. “I’m not so noble as to turn down your money. But between you and me, this won’t pan out how you’re hoping. You nearly died the first time you stepped in that ring. Your plan is to, what, show everyone you’re a big star?”

“I got a little overconfident,” Yin conceded. “I’ll do better this time around, though.”

“You’re assuming you’ll get another shot at this. Darling is only interested in putting on entertaining fights. Against the Bull, you got laid out in no time flat. To Darling, he didn’t nearly get his money’s worth.”

“So you’re saying he won’t give me another fight?”

“Most likely.”

“Then I’ll make him.”

Lax snorted. “Teens.”

They reached the Pit. Lax got her in the front door, and she continued on her own. Darling wasn’t in his usual seating area, so she went down a level. She spotted the reedling in the ring, overseeing a practice spar between a pair of bulked-up wildkin.

“Darling!” she shouted, walking towards the announcer.

Darling spun around. He fixed her with a light frown, as though it took a moment for him to place her. “Oh. It’s you. I don’t know how you got in here, but—”

“I want you to give me another match,” Yin said. She stopped in front of him, hands on hips, towering over the diminutive kin.

“That’s funny, because I really don’t care what you want. You lost. Go sulk elsewhere. After your performance, no one wants to see you fight. Whatever wind you had in your sails before, you’ve squandered it.”

Yin wanted to punch the reedling so badly. She took a breath and held herself back. “Give me a match. Any match. If I prove myself, let me fight the Bull again.”

He was the one she wanted to beat. That monster. If she wanted to be a hero, she’d need to be able to stand up to complete bloodthirst like that and come out on top.

“You’re—”

“I’m not done. If you give me a match, I’ll not only give you five thousand standards, but if I win, you can keep the winnings.

Darling’s eyes lit up with greed, quickly tempered. He scoffed. “Five thousand is pocket change for me. Gimme twenty, and I’ll consider it.”

“Ten.”

“Fifteen.”

“Ten. I won’t give you a standard more than that.”

Darling put two fingers to his lips. “Hmm. Alright, then. I think I’ve got just the match for you. Arxus Aucom, ever heard of him?”

Yin shook her head.

“Disgraced paladin from the Valerian Dynasty. He’s not among my highest ranked fighters, so you might actually have a shot to win. I can set you up to fight within a few days, as soon as you bring me that money. Sound good?”

“Good.”

Darling reached out his hand. Yin shook the tiny appendage. The reedling grinned and walked off as though she had ceased existing to yell at his fighters.